Jawaharlal Nehru had called dams temples of modern India.
A day after North Bengal faced one of the worst natural disasters in recent times that claimed at least 24 lives, (Mamata Banerjee said 23), Bengal chief minister questioned the necessity of dams if flooding cannot be prevented.
“Without dams the situation would have been better,” Mamata said while talking to reporters before leaving for Hasimara in north Bengal on Monday.
“For 20 years I have been asking for de-siltation of Farakka, Maithan, Panchet and Durgapur barrage. Nobody listens. Water from Bhutan, Sikkim, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are entering Bengal and flooding our areas. The rivers are overflowing. Where will our water go?”
Mamata claimed north Bengal had received 300 mm rain in a span of 12 hours.
Following criticism of her matching steps with starlets at the Durga Puja carnival on Sunday evening, Mamata swung to damage control mode.
She had announced on Sunday morning that she would leave for north Bengal Monday afternoon.
State minister Aroop Biswas and north Bengal Trinamool leader Gautam Deb have been despatched to Dhupguri.
“We had requested the Bhutan government to release water slowly. They replied, though it is not exactly an apology. The Damodar Valley Corporation is trying to save Jharkhand. I have no problems with that. How much water can we contain? What happened in north Bengal is a combination of man-made floods and excess rains. Bengal is like a boat. Had dredging been done at Haldia, Calcutta Port, Panchet and Maithan this would not have happened,” Mamata said.
The chief minister announced Rs. five lakh compensation to the kins of the 8 who died in the hills and five in Nagrakata.
“We have got the reports of these 23 deaths. Money cannot compensate the loss of a life but this is our social obligation,” she said.
An aftermath of landslides in a disaster-hit area, in Darjeeling, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025. PTI picture
Among Dhupguri, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Jorebungalow, Kalimpong, Mirik and Nagrakata, the last two were the worst affected, Mamata said.
“Along with the chief secretary (Manoj Pant), I will go to Hasimara. From there we will try to reach Nagrakata, as far as is feasible. There is so much water in Nagrakata, the office of the block development officer’s office and police station is under water. On Tuesday, we will visit Mirik,” Mamata said.
The chief minister said 500 tourists have been rescued and are being brought to Siliguri.