Guwahati: Former Assam Leader of the Opposition and ex-Nazira MLA, Debabrata Saikia, has urged the Assam government to launch the Special Integrated Dikhow River Basin Rehabilitation Project under the District Mineral Foundation Trust (DMFT) and the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY), seeking long-term rehabilitation of flood-hit families and ecological restoration in Upper Assam. In a detailed representation submitted to Chief Secretary Ravi Kota, Saikia said the devastating floods that hit Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat and adjoining districts warranted a comprehensive rehabilitation package rather than temporary relief measures. Saikia proposed that the state declare the entire Dikhow River Basin a special rehabilitation project under DMFT and PMKKKY, arguing that mining-affected communities are entitled to statutory assistance for environmental restoration and livelihood recovery. He, however, said the exact causes of the floods require scientific assessment and stopped short of directly attributing the disaster to mining activities, while calling for an expert investigation into whether authorised and illegal mining, river morphology changes and other human interventions aggravated the devastation. He also contended that the existing compensation announced by the state government would be insufficient for families that had lost their homes and livelihoods.