[Assam] Katrina Floods and Top Secret Corruption in Long Term Planning

[umesh sharma]

while trying to figure out a nagging electrochemistry problem - reduction potential of Iron (III) to Iron (II) which does not seem to follow the common algorithm I was wondering whether I should wait till tomorrow and consult the book. But then thats discovery - through self-discovery individuals can even discover God and their own soul (whatever that may mean) . In the same spirit I had asked a Water Resources expert from Assam - now building Flood Control maps for Washington DC and other parts of the US - while he was dropping me off after the 2008 Bihu celebrations last Saturday. 

He builds plans whereby flood-prone areas can be identified - even if only once in a 100 years (1% chance of floods). Those houses or buildings in this area cannot get housing loan unless they pay thousands of dollars of flood insurance each year. No new development work or commercial complexes can come up there. Ofcourse he mentioned about the infamous Hurricane Katrina  floods  and people building houses  in flood prone zone in New Orleans .  He said  that levees  were  bad there  and becos  of levees those areas had not been declared flood prone. Levees mean they will keep flood waters away.  There are levees in DC too,now declared unsafe leading to many areas to be declared  flood prone in coming new maps.

New maps showing new developments keep getting postponed esp if it is in the interests of some to do so.

He mentioned the case of Assam's flood info. How it is a highly confidential and when some researchers wanted info they couldn't get it. Later all that info and more was obtained from some US univs. Same about drainage patterns etc - now easily available from Google and wiki maps. 

Also he was rather disillusioned how master plans are kept on back burner fr 25 years even after flood control plans are made. We discussed Rajasthan's case where city's dvelopment plans - such as where would the new township be built or where the national highway cut across etc etc are highly confidential - only known to IAS officers, the Babus and the politicians ---so that they can buy the land in adjoining areas at dirt cheap rates and once the developments do take place - they can make a killing. 

Even dead honest govt officers (I know one such top official who chose to live in a remote area outside the city for long - now a multi-millionare in US dollar terms) can get rich without associated guilt. 

Then the  Water and Flood expert (no longer on AssamNet) mentioned that that is so even in Guwahati. All land is already bought by elite-criminal-nexus by the time any development does arise.

Any comments about slow pace of development and how it benefits some nexuses.

Umesh


PS: Though I have witnessed floods in my birthplace  (in Bihar) and later saw 1980 floods cut away my locality from the rest of the city and threatened to wipe off locality - sand cuts easily
. 

Umesh Sharma

Washington D.C. 

1-202-215-4328 [Cell]

Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005

http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/index.html (Edu info)

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ (Management Info)




www.gse.harvard.edu/iep  (where the above 2 are used )
http://harvardscience.harvard.edu/



http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/
       
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