The country got its first river island district on Thursday when Majuli, the world’s biggest sweet water island, situated in Assam, was upgraded from a sub-division to the state’s 35th district.
The decision to elevate Majuli to a full-fledged district was taken in June, 2016 at the first Cabinet meeting of the Sarbananda Sonowal administration. The island, perched on the confluence of Brahmaputra and Subansiri rivers, was declared the world’s biggest river island by the Guinness Book of World Records a few days ago.
History:
Originally, the island was a long, narrow piece of land called Majoli (land in the middle of two parallel rivers) that had the Brahmaputra flowing in the north and the Burhidihing flowing in the south, till they met at Lakhu. Frequent earthquakes in the period 1661–1696 set the stage for a catastrophic flood in 1750 that continued for 15 days, which is mentioned in historical texts and reflected in folklore. As a result of this flood, the Brahmaputra split into two branches — one flowing along the original channel and the other flowing along the Burhidihing channel and the Mājuli island was formed. The Burhidihing’s point of confluence moved 190 km east and the southern channel which was the Burhidihing became the Burhi Xuti. The northern channel, which was previously the Brahmaputra, became the Luit Xuti. In due course, the flow in the Luit Xuti decreased, and it came to be known as the Kherkutia Xuti; and the Burhi Xuti expanded via erosion to become the main Brahmaputra River.
Economy
The main industry is agriculture, with paddy being the chief crop. Mājuli has a rich and diverse agricultural tradition, with as many as 100 varieties of rice grown, all without pesticides or artificial fertilisers. Among the fascinating arrays of rice produced are the Komal Saul, a unique type that can be eaten after immersing the grains in warm water for 15 minutes and usually eaten as a breakfast cereal; the bao dhan, that grows under water and is harvested after ten months; and the Bora saul, a sticky brown rice used to make the traditional cake known as pitha. Fishing, dairying, pottery, handloom and boat-making are other important economic activities.
People
The dwellers of Mājuli are mostly of the Mising tribes from Arunachal Pradesh who immigrated here centuries ago. Apart from them, the inhabitants are from the Deori and Sonowal Kacharis tribes. Languages spoken are Mising, Assamese, and Deori. The island has 144 villages with a population of over 150,000 and a density of 300 individuals per square km.
Culture
The festival of Ali aye ligang is celebrated during mid-February with great pomp and show. It is celebrated for five days starting from second Wednesday of February till the next week. Local dishes like purang apin (rice wrapped in special leaves), apong (rice beer) and dishes made of pork, fish and chickens are served. Traditional Mising dance Gumrag Soman is performed in every village worshiping the almighty Donyi polo (mother sun and father moon) asking for good year of harvest.
Virtually every person on the island is involved in the three-day long raas festival, depicting the life of Krishna. People from hundreds of kilometers away come to celebrate this festival including a number of expatriate members of community. Thesatras have honed certain art and craft traditions, which can now be found only here. In Natun Samuguri Satra for example, one can still find the craft of mask-making; and in the Kamalabari Satra the finest boats are made.
Photo gallery
Source: wikipedia.org
