Students riding an elephant to cross a river in Khairkata to appear for their exams during last year’s monsoon. File picture

May 26: The state irrigation department has decided to form a combat force to carry out emergency work before the monsoon, a time when several parts of north Bengal are flooded.

Irrigation minister Rajib Banerjee, who is on a trip to north Bengal to visit the sites where river embankments and guard walls are under construction, today said such a force would be formed to work during emergencies.

Last year during the monsoon, elephants were sent into some flooded areas of Dhupguri in Jalpaiguri district to ferry children to school for their annual examination.

“During the rainy season, water levels rise in all the rivers. This causes a spillover of river water across the banks and damages embankments. To handle such situations and to ensure that least damage or flooding is caused, we are forming this combat force which can proactively take up the task of damage-control,” said Banerjee.

“It would comprise sub-assistant engineers and their seniors from Teesta Barrage Project and North Bengal Flood Control Commission,” the minister said today, after checking the flood control work on the banks of the Teesta, Mal and Chel rivers that flow through Jalpaiguri district.

According to Banerjee, the force would also talk to firms of contractors concerned and the workers who are employed to carry out emergency work like repairing damaged embankments or to build guard walls to contain the river water.

“We would sanction necessary funds for such emergency works. Meanwhile, members of the combat force would interact with the contractors and also provide them with specific guidelines regarding their role during the emergency,” he said.

“Also, a list of vulnerable locations, which is based on records and feedback received from officials working in different levels, would be prepared. A close watch would be kept on all these locations and regular communication would be made about the status of such areas during the monsoon months. In case there is a breach, the combat force would immediately resort to action,” Banerjee said.

In Jalpaiguri, the department is increasing the length of the noses of embankments (structure made of earth and stone, which protrude into the river from the bank, to prevent water from hitting the embankment) to protect the town from the swelling river during monsoons by spending Rs 3.12 crore.

“Similar work is in progress at Gourikon, under Rajganj block of Jalpaiguri, where the Teesta has been brought back to its course. After the deviation of the river, around 22 acres of land on its right bank had gone under water. Out of that, around 12 acres has been recovered after this diversion,” said an irrigation department source.

“We have spent over Rs 12 crore for the project to build six noses and channels for the free flow of the river and construction and repair of the embankments,” said the minister.

The state irrigation minister, while speaking further on the work carried out by his department, said the state has built 136km of embankment in the past two years.

“Out of it, a major portion has been created in north Bengal. We have spent around Rs 80 crore so far. Work to build similar embankments and noses for another 60km has been taken up. All these would be done to prevent flooding and other damage, caused by rivers during monsoons,” he said.