Majuli – The disappearing island in Assam

Majuli (pronounced Mazuli), the largest freshwater river island of the world (located in the North Eastern of Assam, India), is eroding every day. Every year it is said that chunks of land fall into the mighty Brahmaputra, forever gone. The monsoon season results in massive floods, when the river water level goes beyond the danger limit, further eroding this beautiful island.   

“The island had a total area of 1,250 square kilometers (483 sq mi), but having lost significantly to erosion it had an area of only 352 square kilometres (136 sq mi) in 2014.[2]Majuli has shrunk as the river surrounding it has grown.”  – Wiki

My dad told me that the school he went to no longer exists. It has been long since that piece of land became a part of the river. Majuli is an island that is disappearing every passing day, inch by inch, into the untamed Brahmaputra.    The ferries carry a lot of traffic to and from Majuli and various districts of Assam. During my last visit, while I was waiting for Dad to arrive at Nimati ghat (Jorhat), after a visit to his birthplace, I saw how incredibly fragile and delicate life looked against nature. That ferry was not only packed with people but also cars and bikes, all at the mercy of the majestic river.

 
Majuli Assam
Last December at  Nimati Ghat, Jorhat, Assam
 
 
 
Our lives are fragile and probably if we believe that more often we would start appreciating the lives of others too.
Note- Here’s the current statistics of Flood situation in Assam. Over 200 animals drowned in the past two weeks, including 13 rare Rhinoceros.  Kaziranga National Park,  a UNESCO certified world heritage place and home to two-thirds of the  world’s one Horned Rhino, was 80% submerged in flood water.  30 lakh people  have been displayed displaced and 28 lost their lives. 
 
 
 
 
Linking to:
 
Blog-a-rhythm Prompt – Fragile Lives (Used as a theme for the post)
 
 
 
 
 
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Related Post – 7 facts about Assam and its people

58 thoughts on “Majuli – The disappearing island in Assam

  1. It is sad to read about loss of lives, both of humans and animals. The river flows taking with it the parts of land from the island, we can just stand and watch the destruction.I have been meaning to visit Assam for a while now, we do have such fragile lives.

  2. If we don't actually now, Nature I'm it's fury will destroy us. Global warming has gone up to alarming levels. The floods in Assam are a reflection of that. It is just sad to hear how countless lives and resources are lost! 🙁
    Very good take on the prompt.

  3. The news about the floods has been very depressing, Rajlakshmi!Wonder if it's Nature's way of getting even with the man-made ecological imbalances.

  4. I know how awful the situation is in Assam. We've been organizing essentials towards flood relief via a Facebook group to send to those areas. Can't even imagine the horror of losing everything overnight. May we be grateful for everything we have.

  5. This is madness!! 30 lakhs are displaced!!! No wonder the river becomes deadly in times of monsoon!
    And those whose lives are dependent on the river, sure lead fragile lives!

    Geets

  6. In so many places around the world our beautiful Earth is slowly crumbling and every day lives are being lost to nature and to man. One of my places to visit is Kaziranga.

  7. How devastating about island eroding and about the floods and how so many animals and people are drowning in that river. Good take on the prompt. Fragile lives, indeed!

  8. Nature in its fury can be pretty destructive. Sad about the flood situation in Assam. Not only it is devastating for people and animals but so much of resources are lost too!

  9. The fragile environment has a role to play in our mortality on planer earth too! They say small steps can help make a change, and the least we can do is try and hope for the best!

  10. If we do not heed to nature soon – we are all endagered! B'lore recenly had a episode of flash flood n a lake which is 2km awy from my house partly washed off one of those huts that had come up in its vivinity 🙁

  11. I have heard about Majuli and every year what the growing river results in. And the floods in Assam, I just hope situation goes back to normal soon. It's a pity very few care about our North East. But yes, you are right, if only we realize how fragile the relationship with nature is , maybe we might take care of it

  12. The two sides of nature are such opposites. On one side it nourishes and on one side the wrath it unfurls is really disheartening. Sad to know the trauma caused.

  13. This is shocking. The river can be dangerous. We need to be better prepared to meet the rains. How sad it is that rare rhinos were drowned not to mention the loss of precious property. I cannot begin to imagine how people displaced by the flood will rebuild their lives.

  14. Kaziranga National Park is such a huge area. I visited it in 1990. It pains me to know the rare rhinos have drowned in the floods. Brahmaputra is a mighty river like no other in our country. As a child sitting on it banks in Guwahati, I always took it for a sea. Soil erosion, rising levels of water bodies are real. We, living in big cities, feel far removed from concerns of climatic change but every monsoon the water coming from the skies makes us realise the wrecks, resulting from greed of people. You have raised a worthy cause with the prompt.

  15. Oh my ! It hurts to even read the updates of the flood. It's disheartening and sad to know that so many animals have lost their lives. Global warming and it's impact is catching up on all of us at an alarming rate and it makes me worried to realize what world we are leaving behind for our next generation. 🙁

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