Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday reiterated his demand to dismantle the Farakka Barrage as the silt deposited in the Ganga after its construction is responsible for the spate in the river in Bihar.

He raised the issue before NIT alumni members - some serving, some retired from the water resources department - at the alumni meet of the Bihar College of Engineering-National Institute of Technology.

Nitish, who holds a degree in electrical engineering from the Bihar College of Engineering, now known as NIT Patna, said: "Siltation in the Ganga river has resulted in floods. The only way to remove the silt from the river is to remove the Farakka Barrage which has not done anything good for the state."

The last time he spoke on the matter was August last year when many parts of Bihar were flood-hit because of a spate in the Ganga and its tributaries. Recent studies have shown that the average depth of the Ganga has decreased by almost 50 per cent from Patna to Farakka in Bengal's Murshidabad district - a waterway distance of 460km downstream - in the four decades since the barrage was built.

"Siltation of the river has decreased the river's breadth and depth," Nitish said again on Sunday. "As the depth of the Ganga has reduced, water spreads to the adjoining areas in the event of a rise in the water level."

The chief minister's outburst on the matter - which he has raised before the Manmohan Singh as well as Narendra Modi governments - was a reaction to former faculty member T. Prasad's claim that while Bihar had a lot of potential in water resources, the Bihar government has not been able to manage them properly. Prasad, who has taught Nitish in his days at Bihar College of Engineering, was the guest of honour on Sunday.

While Prasad was speaking on the microphone, the device malfunctioned leading to the sound going off for 5-10 minutes. That too got Nitish's attention, who told NIT director Asok De how could sound systems not work at an engineering college event. Nitish's reaction was understandable as he was the next one up to speak.

Speaking at the alumni meet, Nitish asked the faculty members, students and retired teachers to sit and discuss siltation in the Ganga. He spoke of his school and college days when he would sit for hours on the Ganga's banks.

The chief minister said he has seen the Ganga flow continuously round the year, and while the river not only has abundance of water, the water quality is good as well. He indirectly attacked the technocrats, especially engineers from the water resources department present at the meet, for framing policies (construction of dams and embankments) that disturb the ecological balance.

He also urged NIT director De towards developing the institution as one of the best in the country. Welcoming the chief minister, De thanked him for providing the college 125 acres at Bihta for its new campus.

Senior alumni members R.R. Sinha and Shailendra Kumar Sinha were felicitated, while members of the 1957, 1967 and 1992 batches celebrated their diamond, golden and silver jubilees, respectively.