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Charaideo map creation hits equipment hurdle

GUWAHATI: Government efforts to prepare a map of Charaideo has hit a roadblock as the state does not have the required machinery and equipment to chalk out plan of the heritage site. Without a map, the Unesco world heritage tag remains a distant dream as the international organisation requires a boundary demarcating the historic graveyard of the Ahom royals.



The site in upper Assam , which houses many graveyards of Ahom royals, resembles the Egyptian pyramids. Locals of the area believe that around 4,000 bighas of land, including ponds and graveyards, are part of the heritage site but none of them are sure about the demarcation because of the absence of the original map of the historical sites of the Bakapukhuri Habi Gaon village. The move to get a world heritage tag for the iconic site came after a few local NGOs urged the district administration and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to prepare the map of the historic Ahom era sites of Charaideo and bring them under government's protection. In September, a seven-member committee was constituted under the supervision of Charaideo deputy commissioner Dipak Handique to prepare a map of the site after surveying the area.

However, more than a month has gone by and no survey has been conducted. When Media Management & Research Association (MMRA), an NGO mobilising support for the preservation of the historic Ahom monuments, probed into the matter, it found out that the committee did not have the required machinery to conduct a survey without which the map cannot be prepared.

"After relentless struggle to protect the heritage site, the state directorate of land record and survey gave their nod to the district administration to conduct the survey. It was decided that all historically important ponds, hillocks and unprotected graves in Charaideo would be examined between September 11 and 19. We were surprised to know that due to lack of equipment and machinery, the entire process has come to a halt," MMRA president Zakirul Alam, who is also a member of the seven-member committee, said.

Government sources said that the directorate of land record and survey has written to the finance department seeking approval for procuring the required equipments. However, there is no certainty as to when they will get the required sanction.

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