Slamming the Odisha government over the current flood situation in the State, Odisha BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) chief, Sameer Mohanty said the Naveen Patnaik-led government has crossed all limits of negligence and destroyed the livelihood of people dependent on the Mahanadi.
Mohanty said, “I completely agree with the SRC who yesterday said about the flood water management of Mahanadi. But what about the safety of river embankments, are not they the responsibility of the State government?”
“Why did the government neglect in reinforcing the embankments causing several breaches during the flood,” asked Mohanty.
“The safety review of river embankments has been pending for three years, as a result we are left with widely submerged roads and inundated villages,” he added.
The State government has completely neglected the Mahanadi over last 22 years. The rule curve of Hirakud dam which should have been reviewed every 10 years, has not been reviewed in last 38 years.
“The Odisha government only believes in blowing its own trumpet but the actual benefits elude the common man,”
“I have urged party leaders and members to visit flood-affected places and extend whatever help they can practically manage to alleviate the plight of the people stuck in floods.”
As per the water resource department data, currently, excess water from the Hirakud dam is being released through 40 gates. The current water level at Hirakud dam is 626.47 feet. The dam’s storage capacity is 630 cubic feet. While the inflow of water is 6.24 lakh cusecs, the outflow is 6.81 lakh cusecs.
The ravaging flood in Mahanadi basin has caused immense hardships for people in several districts of Odisha and the situation is unlikely to change in next 24 hours.
Briefing the media on the flood status in the state, Special Relief Commissioner of Odisha Pradip Kumar Jena said, the next 24 hours is very important in the fight against the disaster, billed as the biggest flood in the state after 11 years.