 |
| A train stranded by flood water at Sikta in West Champaran. Picture by Satendra Naryain Sharma |
Patna, Aug. 24: A record water discharge into river Kosi from Nepal has revived fears of a repeat of the 2008 devastating Bihar floods.
The water resource department has sounded a high alert as the surging water level pose a threat to the river’s embankment, officials said.
This year, the water resources department has spent Rs 17.5 crore on flood-protection measures.
“We have alerted senior officials, including engineers, to keep a close vigil on the structures on the river bank,” said water resources department principal secretary Ajay Nayak.
“The government has sounded a high alert in the Kosi region following a record water discharge into the Kosi from Nepal,” he added.
The water resource department principal secretary elaborated: “The disaster management department has directed the district officials of Supaul, Madhepura, Purnea, Saharsa and Araria to alert people living between the two Kosi embankments and be prepared to face any dangerous development in the region.”
“After heavy rains in Nepal over the past one week, the water discharges into the Kosi river was recorded at 3.39 lakh cusecs and 4.16 lakh cusecs in Gandak river till late on Tuesday. It is the maximum discharge into the river in the last five years,” said Indu Bhusan Kumar, the flood cell head of the water resources department.
Kumar also added that Rajeshwar Dayal, the engineer-in-chief of the water resources department, has been camping at the Kosi barrage site in Birpur along with another engineer, Chandrashekar Paswan, and monitoring the situation, officials of the flood fighting force have also been deployed at the site, said Kumar.
However, Nayak said: “The Kosi embankment is safe and there is no need to panic. But at the same time, we cannot predict about nature. Till now there is no threat from the heavy discharge into the Kosi river,' Nayak told The Telegraph.
But Nayak stressed that the eastern Kosi embankment, which had breached two years back is totally safe.
The eastern Kosi embankment had breached on August 18, 2008 following the discharge of 1.64 cusecs of water into the river, flooding five districts of north Bihar.
Official sources said the maximum discharge of 3.12 lakh cusecs of water into Kosi river and 3.17 lakhcusecs water in Gandak river was recorded last year.
An official in the water resources department said the Bagmati river has crossed the danger level by .49 metres but it would not have any impact on the river.
He further added that sudden increase in water-level brought back fear of floods in the respective regions.
Two years ago, lakhs of people were rendered homeless in Bihar when the Kosi river breached its bank upstream in Nepal and changed course.
Large tracts of land were flooded, forcing people to flee their homes.
Thousands of people were affected in the floods that were said to be the worst in Bihar in the last 50 years.
People were forced to live along roads under the open sky without food and drinking water in relief camps.