Fund allotted for anti-erosion work

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 6 SEPT: The irrigation and waterways department in Malda has finally managed Rs 9.85 crore for taking “permanent” anti-erosion work on the left bank of the river Fulohar at Bhaluka Bazaar in Harishchandrapur.

The district administrative officials approached the executive engineer of irrigation department yesterday in Malda for properly utilising the funds allotted from the RIDF (Rural Infrastructure Development Fund).

Accepting the proposal from the additional district magistrate (development) in Malda, the executive engineer of irrigation, Mr S Misra, decided to implement the anti-erosion work at Bhaluka. However, it may be noted that the irrigation department had thought of taking up anti-erosion work at Bhaluka, when the embankment was eroded away, but it could not manage to find a source of fund to implement the project.

Mr Misra has asked his assistant engineers to prepare the scheme within three days so that he can send it to the chief engineers' committee for their approval.

The executive engineer, irrigation (Malda) division, Mr S Misra said: “We have planned to implement the work covering two km length along the left bank of the river Fulohar. The objective is to check erosion and to save the embankment for flood protection”.

Mr Misra also said: “Though we had adopted ‘river training works’ for shifting deep channels from the left to the right bank of the Fulohar by setting up permeable spurs in river beds estimating Rs 1.30 crore, we do not need to do that now”.

“By covering a length of two km along the Fulohar's we will build bed bars to protect the embankment from further erosion," Mr Misra added.

At present the engineers are building a 350 metre long barricade at the embankment of Bhaluka Bazaar for flood protection, apprehending the next spell of floods in mid September.