CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction The Assam Urban Infrastructure Investment Program (AUIIP) funded by ADB covers two Program cities Guwahati and Dibrugarh. AUIIP envisages implementation of physical investments in various components, namely (1) Water Supply in South East Guwahati (2) Improved drainage system in South East Guwahati (3) Storm Water Drainage for Dibrugarh (4) Solid Waste Management (SWM) for Dibrugarh. Other components include Capacity Building, Institutional development, Governance, Urban Reforms and Investment Program Support. With a view to address these infrastructural challenges and improving the quality of services in both the cities, Govt. of Assam (GoA) took initiatives in the sector of water supply, sewerage, drainage and solid waste management with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) under the Assam Urban Infrastructure Investment Program (AUIIP). The Program is divided into two tranches under Multi-tranche Financing Facility of ADB to be implemented over a six years period from 1 March 2012 to 31 December 2017. This chapter is mainly devoted to background of the study, methodology adopted and coverage, besides history, demography, location, town profile and economic status of Dibrugarh. 1.2 Dibrugarh district profile A. History of Dibrugarh: In the ancient days, Dibrugarh was ruled by the Chutias and later in 1233 A.D. it became a part of the Ahom kingdom. The Ahom built a Garh (fort) on the bank of the river Dibru, a small tributary of Brahmaputra and the name of the area became famous as Dibrugrarh. During the insurrection of Moamoria, it was ruled by the Matak. Later the control was passed over to the British. In 1838, the famous the East India Company formed the Lakhimpur district and the present Dibrugrh district was a part of it. Later in 1842, the British annexed Matak country and Sadiya and added these territories to the Lakhimpur district. Then its HQ was transferred from Lakhimpur to Dibrugarh in the Matak Country and the first Deputy Commissioner s office of Lakhimpur dist. was established in Grahambazar area. Since 1842, when the HQ was shifted to Dibrugarh, there were three subdivisions: viz. Dibrugarh, North Lakhimpur and Dhemaji. The district was bifurcated on Oct the 2 nd, 1971. Tinsukia sub division of Dibrugarh district was created on January, 26, 1973. Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 1

B. Location of Dibrugarh: The region falls in the North eastern part of India and in the extreme east of Assam between 26.50-27.90 degree north latitude and 93.46-96.10 degree east latitude. Being located on the north of the 27 o North latitude on the bank of river Brahmaputra and with its unique physiographic elements, the area experiences subtropical monsoon climate with mild winter, warm and humid summer and high rainfall. Dibrugarh has the boundaries as follows: North : South : East : West : Dhemaji District and part of Lakhimpur District Sivasagar District and Arunachal Pradesh Tinsukia District Sivasagar District The area stretches from the North Bank of the mighty Brahmaputra, which flows a length of 95km through the northern margin of the district, to the Patkai foothills on the South. The Burhi Dihing, a major tributary of the Brahamputra with its network of tributaries and wetlands flows through the district from east to west. Till the great earthquake of 1950, the north easternmost corner was drained by the Dibru River. The Dibru was a main tributary of the Brahamputra the confluence of it being at about 18km east of Dibrugarh City. By raising the bed of the Brahamputra, the earthquake caused severe erosion on its south bank and as a result the Dibru river got merged with its master stream in Rahmaria mouza. Table 1.1 Dibrugarh district profile Total Land Area 3381 sq. km. Total Population (as per 2011 census) 13,27,748 Total Male Population 6,80,108 Total Female Population 6,47,634 Others 6 No. of Towns 3 No. of Revenue Circles 7 No. of Blocks 7 No. of Villages 1362 No. of Forest villages 27 No. of Tea Gardens 160 (Source: Census of India) Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 2

1.3 Dibrugarh town profile A. History of Dibrugarh town: The British had established the Dibrugarh Town on the southern bank of the river Brahamaputra connecting it to the other parts by river ways. Originally being a hub of tea export, a market place sparng up in Purana Bazar area (old market). In 1907, the new market was developed as the Purana Bazar area and the Dibru River has been submerged by mighty Brahmaputra. In the year 1882, the town was connected to other parts by railways. Under Bengal Act 1876, a Municipality was set up in 1878. In 1872, it had a population of only 3870 persons. Within a span of 110 years, the population rose from 11,227 in 1901 to 1, 46,122 in 2011 (Census India report). Advancement in Road, Air and Telecommunication, has acceleraterd its growth both physically and economically. The growth of population of Dibrugarh Town can be seen from the table given below: Table 1.2 Popolation growth of Dibrugarh town Year Population Percent increase 1901 11,227 --- 1911 14,563 29.71 1921 16,007 9.91 1931 18,734 17.03 1941 23,191 23.79 1951 37,991 63.81 1961 58,480 51.93 1971 80,348 37.38 1981 --- --- 1991 1,20,112 49.51 2001 1,22,523 1.99 2011 1, 46,122 1.19 (Source: Census of India) Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 3

Fig.1.1 Ward map of Dibrugarh town In due course of time, the Dibrugarh Town became the Head Quarter of the district as well as its only sub-division. It is a lovely town and one of the important hubs of Assam and the North-East of India. It is an important business centre as it is home to some of the largest tea estates in the world and is close to Assam s oil mines. It is connected to the rest of the state and the country by N.F. Railways, N.H.-37 & airways. Mohanbari Airport is located at a distance of about 16 KM from Dibrugarh town which serves Dibrugarh, Tinsukia and Sivasagar districts and Arunachal Pradesh and is linked with Guwahati, Kolkata, and Delhi. Besides these, there is Air force field at Chabua (Nadua) at a distance of about 25 KM from Dibrugarh town. B. Demographics: As of the 2011 India census, Dibrugarh town had a population of 1, 46,122. Males constituted 51.6% of the population and females 48.4%. The sex ratio of Dibrugarh town was 937 per 1000 males. The average literacy rate of urban Dibrugarh is 89.4%, which is higher than the national average literacy rate. Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 4

A brief statistics of the town is given in the table: Table 1.3 Dibrugarh town profile Total Land Area 15.5 sq. km. Total Population (as per 2011 census) 1,46,122 Total Male Population 75, 429 Total Female Population 70, 692 Slum population (as per 2011 census) 27089 Percentage of slum population to total 18.5 No. of Wards 22 No. of House Holdings 17,181 No. of Revenue Circle Offices 2 Police Station 1 Railway Station 1 ASTC Bus Station 1 Private Nursing Homes 21 Medicine Stores 220 Restaurant 425 Hotel 36 Cloth Store 170 Electric Shop 340 Motor Parts Shop 120 Cycle Store 12 Utensils 45 Wood & Bamboo Shop 225 Grocery Stores 2000 Hardware Stores 300 Stationary Stores 1850 (Source: Census of India 2011 & Town & Country Planning, Dibrugarh) C. Location Dibrugarh Town is 103.74 metres above the sea level whereas an average level of river Brahmaputra remains at 104.35 to 104.65 metres above the mean sea level. The highest flood level recorded was 106.77 metres. Ironically, during the flood season, the people of Dibrugarh live about three feet below the river water level. D. Rainfall The average annual rainfall of the Dibrugarh city in the north is 276 cm with a total number of 193 rainy days. The temperature generally decreases from south to north. Rainfall records show a decreasing trend towards east and west of Dibrugarh city. On the basis of the climatic characteristics such as distribution of temperature, rainfall, rainy days, humidity, presence of Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 5

fogs and thunderstorms, the climate of the area may be classified into four seasons: (1) Winter, (2) pre-monsoon, (3) monsoon and (4) retreating monsoon. The rain associated with monsoon set in by middle of June, reach the peak in July and continue till middle of September. The relative humidity during the rainy season is about 88%. E. Economy Dibrugarh is considered as an economic hub of North East region of India. Dibrugarh is at the centre of economic activities dominated by the following industries: Oil and natural gas Tea production Tourism Power generation Fertilizer Cottage industry 1.4 Background of the study The storm water drainage and solid waste management (SWM) in Dibrugarh needs urgent planning and infrastructural intervention to meet the minimum sanitation needs of the people. Inadequate solid waste management and the indiscriminate dumping of waste leave the drainage system severely polluted, choked, and prone to severe local flooding especially during the rainy season. Thus, to improve quality of services, Government of Assam (GoA) has taken initiative for storm water drainage and solid waste management in Dibrugarh with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) under the Assam Urban Infrastructure Investment Program (AUIIP). The program aims to bring improvement in the existing infrastructure for a quality living and healthy environment. A. Storm water drainage improvement: Dibrugarh Drainage Improvement subproject covers (i) de-silting and lining of a 9.515- kilometer portion of the Dibrugarh Town Protection (DTP) dyke drain; (ii) construction of 386-meter diversion channel in two stretches; (iii) demolition of existing narrow culverts and replacement by wide new culverts and a bridge and (iv) demolition of an old narrow sluice gate and construction of a new wider sluice gate. Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 6

Drainage system B. Solid waste management: The Dibrugarh Municipal Board (DMB) is responsible for managing solid waste within the municipal limits while the rest of the Dibrugarh Municipal Planning Area (DMPA) is presently not covered. Major sources generating municipal solid wastes in Dibrugarh are the households, commercial establishments, institutions, markets, street sweeping, and construction/demolition activities. The present waste collection frequency is very irregular and inadequate. Wastes are not segregated at source and are a mixture of inert, recyclable and bio-degradable matters. There is a need of an extensive public awareness campaign to initiate house-to-house collection and waste segregation for a sample cluster of households; improve collection system efficiency; stop unscientific method for disposal of solid waste at the dumping ground and process biodegradable organic fraction; disposal of non-biodegradable fraction and rejects from processing units by sanitary landfill method. C. Outputs envisaged from the program: Output 1: Improved drainage in Dibrugarh: Flow in the existing Dibrugarh protection drain will be improved by removing accumulated silt and waste, drain enlargement, and the widening and reconstruction of all the road and flood relief culverts, bridges and sluice gates which will significantly reduce flooding in the city. The drainage improvement subproject will benefit the citizens of Dibrugarh in the following ways: (i) improved environment, living condition, and public health in Dibrugarh; (ii) reduced household healthcare cost due to flooding and water logging problems; (iii) reduced mandays lost due to water logging and flooding; (iv) reduced temporary resettlement cost due Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 7

to flooding; (v) reduced annual cost of protection measures from flooding; (vi) reduced annual agricultural loss; and (vii) reduced road maintenance cost. Output 2: Improved solid waste management infrastructure in Dibrugarh: SWM service coverage in Dibrugarh will be increased to more than 80% with in-house waste collection, segregation, recycling and improved solid waste collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal. Solid waste disposal 1.5 Objective of the study 1. To conduct a baseline study on current approaches of storm water drainage and solid waste management in Dibrugarh. 1.6 Methodology and coverage 2. Study area : Dibrugarh town 3. Sample size: The sample size for the study was calculated by using estimated 2011 census population (by AUIIP), which is presented in the table below (as per the information supplied by AUIIP). Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 8

Table 1.4 Population growth in Dibrugarh Area Area in sq km 2001 2011 2021 2031 2041 DMB 15.5 137879 166258 199578 234550 269870 Outside DMB 71.83 52542 60529 82963 99965 117503 Total DMP A 87.33 190421 226787 282541 334515 387373 The population of Dibrugarh is estimated to be around 1, 66,258 (under DMB) as per 2011 census which means there are around 33,252 HHs (considering 5 members in each HH). 2.5 percent of these households i.e. 831 HHs was taken as the sample size for the baseline survey. 4. Selection of wards: All 22 wards of Dibrugarh project area were selected for the study. 5. Selection of households within wards: The desired sample of households from each ward was drawn by using PPS method. Each selected ward was divided into five geographical zones (East, West, North, South and Central) and the desired households from each of these zones were selected randomly. Deep stratified random sampling design was used to derive a representative sample. The stratification further took into consideration criteria like: (i) geographical distribution of the population as per Census 2011; (ii) spread of population as per income and housing typology (different types of localities like old city, planned residential colonies, private housing societies including apartments, slum/non-slum like areas etc.); and (iii) urban service coverage (adequate and deficient area for water supply and sanitation). Stakeholder and sample coverage for the study is presented in the table below; Table 1.5 Stakeholders and sample coverage Sl. No. Sample Total sample size Study instruments 1. Wards 22 Information sought 2. Households 831 Semi structured interview schedule Current system for storm water management, water logging problems due to storm water, health conditions, momentary and property losses due to flooding, damage of roads due to storm water etc. 3. Ward member 22 Semi structured interview schedule Current system for solid waste management, frequency of waste collection, street sweeping, waste disposal site, awareness, segregation of waste, willingness to pay for improved services etc. Problem areas of storm water management and solid waste disposal and suggestions for improvement etc. Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 9

90 81.5 81.7 Population in percent 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 18.5 18.3 Census, 2011 Coverage in baseline survey Slum Non-slum Fig.1.2 Percentage distribution of population in slums and non-slums according to census and baseline survey 6. Research tool development: Two types of semi-structured interview schedules were developed for the baseline study; 1. HH schedule 2. Ward member schedule After development, the tools were pre-tested and finalized in consultation with PMC- AUIIP. 7. Operational modalities: a. Composition of field team According to sample size a team of 13 members including one field coordinator, two field supervisor and 10 field surveyors was deployed for data collection. b. Training of field staff Before sending the field team for data collection, intensive two day training was given to them at IASDS, Lucknow. The trainees were addressed by the experts of the related fields from IASDS. On the first day, background of the study, sampling methodology, and household schedule were discussed and mock interview session was conducted. On the second day, ward member schedule was discussed and the teams were sent to the field, to get hands-on experience and field pre-testing. The field experiences of the investigators were shared in the second half, followed by doubts clearing session. One day refresher training was also held at PMC-AUIIP office, Guwahati, Assam. Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 10

8. Quality assurance measures: a. Conducting quality interview The study design laid great emphasis on training and experience of field coordinator, supervisors and investigators along with built in mechanisms of quality assurance. The orientation workshop facilitated the staff to develop common understanding of the study objectives, protocol and spirit of each question. b. Informed consent Informed consent of the respondents was taken by the custodians before preceding the process of interview. The respondents were ensured for the confidentiality of the data collected. c. Supervision Research staff carried out effective monitoring and supervision. Supervisor held discussions with team everyday for sorting out the problems. To ensure better quality of data back check of the data was also done. Interview of Deputy Chairman, Dibrugarh Municipal Board regarding drainage and solid waste management problems Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 11

d. Data Scrutiny The interview schedule was mostly pre-coded with fixed response categories and had several built-in-checks for inconsistencies. Verification was also done at the stage of data entry. Computer based checks were also made to remove inconsistencies. This was done through suitably developed command checks by imposing valid conditions required for different entries. 9. Data Processing and analysis The data was cleaned and analyzed at IASDS. Statistical package SPSS 15.0 was used for data analysis and processing. 1.7 Conceptual framework A broad outline of concepts and definitions which were used in this particular survey is given below: Household: A group of person normally living together and taking food from a common kitchen constituted a household. It included temporary stay-aways (those whose total period of absence from the household was expected to be less than 6 months) but exclude temporary visitors and guests (expected total period of stay less than 6 months). Land possessed: In this survey, the area of land possessed included land owned, leased in and land neither owned nor leased in (i.e. encroached) by the household and excluded land 'leased out'. The total land area possessed by the household as on the date of survey was taken into account. Dwelling unit: It is the accommodation availed of by a household for its residential purpose. The dwelling unit covers all pucca, semi-pucca and kutcha structures used by a household. a. Pucca structure: A pucca structure is one whose walls and roofs are made of pucca materials such as cement, concrete, oven burnt bricks, hollow cement / ash bricks, stone, stone blocks, jack boards (cement plastered reeds), iron, zinc or other metal sheets, timber, tiles, slate, corrugated iron, asbestos cement sheet, veneer, plywood, artificial wood of synthetic material and poly vinyl chloride (PVC) material. b. Kutcha structure: A structure which has walls and roof made of non-pucca materials is regarded as a kutcha structure. Non-pucca materials include unburnt bricks, bamboo, mud, grass, leaves, reeds, thatch, etc. c. Semi-pucca structure: A structure which cannot be classified as a pucca or a kutcha structure as per definition is a semi-pucca structure. Such a structure will have either the walls or the roof but not both, made of pucca materials. Slum: In this survey any compact settlement with a collection of poorly built tenements, mostly of temporary nature, crowded together, usually with inadequate sanitary and Institute of Applied Statistics and Development Studies (IASDS), Lucknow Page 12