Dhubri: : Development of Jhagrarpar Beel (wetland) has remained a bone of contention for nearly 28,000 people living on the outskirts of Dhubri town, opposite Dhubri Medical College and Hospital, for years.The wetland sits in a corridor that is rapidly turning urban under the Dhubri-Gauripur Development Authority, positioned between Dhubri and Gauripur towns. Along the 2.5-km stretch of Dhubri Medical College Road (Mission Road), institutions and infrastructure have steadily filled the landscape — Media College, All India Radio Station, Dhubri Stadium (Dhubri Sports Complex), an FCI godown, an Assam State Electricity Board warehouse with an 11 KV power transmission field, BEd College, schools, banks and other private establishments.Against that backdrop, residents have watched the beel’s development plan move in fits and starts since 2007, when the Jhagrarpar Beel (Wetland) Development Committee first approached the Dhubri district administration. The administration later approved Rs 40 lakh for development of the wetland, raising expectations that the waterbody could be transformed into an eco-tourism park.Committee convener Azaharul Islam said only Rs 9.99 lakh of the approved amount was released to Jhagrarpar Gaon Panchayat, the implementing agency, in two phases during 2011-12 and 2012-13. “With that released amount some paddle boats were purchased, an office of committee was constructed and hyacinth of the wetland was cleared,” he added.Islam said no further funds were released after that, leaving the project stalled. He also alleged that during floods, the boats were taken by the panchayat body and never returned to the committee.For the committee, the delay is no longer just about unfinished works — it is about survival of the wetland itself. Islam said the beel has shrunk to 35.86 bighas from its original 56.67 bighas, with the remaining area steadily eaten away by encroachment from new settlers. A larger plan followed. In 2015, the Dhubri-Gauripur Development Authority submitted a proposal of about Rs 17 crore along with a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to the state govt. But the proposal is yet to be sanctioned.Talking to TOIDhubri-Gauripur Development Authority head official Tutul Roy said the authority has continued pursuing the matter at senior levels and has recently received encouraging indications. “We hope with the formation of new government next month, this project will get top priority,” Roy said.
