Jalpaiguri, May 25 -- Amid growing concerns over floods in North Bengal ahead of the monsoon, North Bengal Development Minister Nisith Pramanik will be convening an emergency high-level meeting at Uttarkanya on Tuesday with MLAs from all eight districts of the region to review disaster preparedness and flood-control measures.
Even before the meeting, the Irrigation Department sanctioned Rs 8 crore for pre-monsoon flood protection works in Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Cooch Behar and Siliguri, signalling an urgent push to strengthen the region's flood defence system.
According to sources, the meeting will focus on major concerns such as damaged river embankments, weak spurs, riverbank erosion and rising riverbeds caused by heavy silt accumulation. MLAs and district officials will also assess the preparedness of the Irrigation Department and review measures taken to tackle possible flood situations during the upcoming monsoon season.
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Minister Nisith Pramanik said, "The monsoon season is approaching, and the government wants to remain fully prepared in advance. This meeting has been called to review preparedness and coordinate flood-control measures."
Malbazar MLA Shukra Munda expressed concern over recurring floods in the Dooars region caused by water flowing down from the hills of Bhutan. "We want to know what effective measures can be taken, as rivers originating from Bhutan continue to flood the plains every monsoon," he said.
Dabgram-Fulbari MLA Shikha Chatterjee and Jalpaiguri MLA Ananta Deb Adhikari raised concerns over the condition of the Teesta River. They said large-scale silt accumulation has raised the riverbed at several places, increasing the risk of flooding if the river swells during heavy rainfall.
Mekhliganj MLA Dadhiram Roy pointed out that massive deposits of sand and silt had accumulated in the Teesta riverbed after the Sikkim glacial lake outburst disaster in October 2023. He alleged that although dredging work had been announced earlier, it was never implemented, raising fears over the river's condition ahead of the monsoon.
Officials said damaged embankments and guide bunds have already been repaired, while construction materials have been stockpiled for emergency flood-control operations. Representatives from the Forest Department, NHPC, Central Water Commission and Teesta Barrage authorities have also been invited to the meeting.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.