Minister for enhanced flood protection ways

Statesman News Service

MALDA, Aug 28: The irrigation and waterways minister, Mr Subhas Naskar has requested the district magistrate Mr CR Das to take initiative to build the ninth retired embankment which is imperative on the left bank of river Ganga for flood protection inthe next year. According to the district magistrate, the minister has expressed concern about poor flood preventive measures on the left bank of the Ganga and has said that the entire Malda district may be devastated by floods if the department cannot build the ninth retired embankment. After visiting the Ganga belt yesterday the minister and top officials held a meeting with the district officials including the district magistrate and proposed to take flood preventive measures. At present the irrigation department is preventing floodwaters of the Ganga by a more than 1 km long dwarf embankment at Kaliachak II from entering into protected areas. The river is flowing just 15 cm below the ‘extreme danger level’ (EDL-25.29 metre) at Manikchak Ghaat in Malda for the last four days . The irrigation department predicts that the water level will continue to rise from next week i.e. the last spell of floods. The district administration could not build the ninth retired embankment in the last five years, after the eighth retired embankment eroded away, due to villagers’ opposition during land acquisition based on the alignment. Last year villagers agreed to offer their land according to the alignment of the embankment but they tried to force the administration to acquire the entire land from the proposed alignment to the bank line of the river. After hearing the proposal of villagers in the all political party meeting at block level, the executive engineer Mr S Misra had turned down the proposal terming it ‘impractical’ and informed the departmental authorities that construction of the ninth retired embankment was not possible here. Mr CR Das said: “I have asked the executive engineer, irrigation department, in Malda to prepare a proposal, based on the resolution adopted from yesterday's meeting convened by the minister, and to inform it officially with a proposal of land acquisition based on the proposed alignment.” “I have also asked the department to complete other formalities on time to hand over land so that the irrigation department can start its work early and can complete it before monsoon,” Mr CR Das said. According to the Malda DM, the alignment will be finalised following technical point of views as suggested by the irrigation department. The DM may call an all-political party meeting to adopt a resolution for the proposed embankment and land acquisition for its construction. The executive engineer Mr S Misra said: “I will send proposal of land acquisition to the district magistrate very soon."