DIBRU SAIKHOWA

Tinsukia is a commercially active district of upper Assam.It is situated at the northeast corner of Assam separated from the national boundary by only a narrow strip of the state of Arunachal Pradesh. Tinsukia is 183km from Jorhat and 495km from Guwahati.

Assam is full of big and small jungles. Most of the preserved large forests are accessible to tourists. Yet few people must have heard the name Dibru Saikhowa and that it is a National Park and a Biosphere Reserve. Forested land is on the decline and any nature-lover today would not mind venturing into a forest if he finds one. Dibru Saikhowa is a good destination for such a tourist. This forested area comparable to the fertile deltaic plain is located 8km beyond Tinsukia.

This is the junction of eight rivers, mostly wet and marshy. The forest is dense is a heaven for the wildlife seekers. Unlike most small forests of Assam, Dibru Saikhowa is covered by diverse flora and fauna. My parent's chief goal of visiting this reserve forest was to see orchids in the wild. And when they were there they found orchids everywhere; on the ground, crowded on the trees. Most of them were in full bloom. The time was November. It is confirmed that Dibru Saikhowa is home to wild horses, river dolphins, Black Breasted Parrot Bill, White winged Wood Ducks, Bengal Florican and other creatures. Wild buffaloes, big wild ducks and river dolphins are a common site. A boat ride is available which will take an inquisitive tourist through the interconnected rivers inside the jungle. The marshy wet lands are seen then. The boat trip is one day long or one can separate it into morning and afternoon trips. The morning trip starts at 8:30 am and the afternoon trip ends at sunset. There is a beautiful view of the sunset over the waters. There are natural hotels at Dibru Saikhowa where one can spend the night.

MAJULI

On land in the middle of the mighty Brahmaputra.

Majuli is in a process of uncontrolled erosion. It is being destroyed and everything is going under water. It is now much smaller than it used to be 15 years ago. When I was a small boy, I had heard that the farming fields of Majuli were very fertile. It was a place where a sumptuous feast was no problem. During the rain, the fields get flooded. The silt that the floods lay is the cause of the fertility uncommon in Assam. Potato, rice and various vegetables are chiefly cultivated. Besides this, even now fishing is done widely and a great catch is a common affair. You will be surprised that both small and big fishes are the main constituents of a traditional Majuli meal. Also, milk & curd are widely available.

I have visited Majuli once. It was in 2007 November to see the Raslila, the theatrical performance of the birth of Krishna and the stories related with it. It is a major event held annually in November. Majuli is about 25km from Jorhat. Jorhat is the place nearest to it. From Jorhat town you will have to take a taxi to Nematighat (17km), where you will get ferry ( big sized boats carrying lots of people and vehicles) to go to Majuli. The ferry ride is about 2hrs 20 minutes depending upon the season (if rainy it takes longer). You get down at Kamalabari ghat in Majuli and take a taxi to Garmur. In Garmur there are 3 small lodges. We stayed in the bamboo one. It takes one full day to tour Majuli. And the places to see are the 4 centers of pilgrimage, also called Satras. Each of them look different. The first one is a simple worship hall where you will see earthen lamps and the other objects related to worshipping. The 2^nd & 3^rd are well-built complexes with museums and guest houses. The forth is where you find the unique earthen handmade colorful masks. During the tour, you will see that Majuli has a scenic beauty. The water bodies, the lonely & sandy roads, the wonderful sunset and birds are all that constitute Majuli.

Raslila is held at night in the satra auditorium. It is actually a play and you will enjoy it. Loud music and roaring voices fill the air. The actors move vigorously on the well-decorated stage relating the story. The part of the play for which the audience wait to see, is when the background curtain is raised to show the full moon and the cows grazing in the field behind the stage. The play ends just before morning.

Inspite of the heavy erosion Mujuli is still fit for tourists. A person from any part of the world can come up to Kaziranga and go a little further to reach Jorhat & from there go to Majuli. You can do a lot of fishing, boating and bird watching to distress your mind there.

The only problem is that Majuli is still very backward. Proper market places are rare. Standard hotels and food is not readily available. Majuli in short is an island village.