BHUBANESWAR: Following his visit to the flood-hit Ganjam district, BJD president and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday said the BJP government’s negligence has pushed the district back by several years.
In a letter to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, the leader of Opposition in the Assembly termed the floods a manmade crisis and said the state government should take all responsibility for the disaster.
Naveen said the earliest warning of IMD was given on October 23. As per the standard operating procedure (SOP) on flood management, the water level of dams should have been monitored 24x7 and water released prior to the rains. However, in case of Ganjam, water was released after the onset of heavy cyclonic rains which compounded the floods and caused huge loss to life and property, he said.
“People have complained that adequate warning was not given before gates of the dams were opened. This gross negligence and manmade crisis raises serious issues of accountability. People are demanding strict action against those responsible for such a serious lapse,” he added.
The BJD chief said during his visit to Hinjili, Sheragada, Aska and Sorada on November 7, he was pained to see the acute distress of the people. He expressed concern that the government was not prepared for floods despite advance warning of IMD.
“The government itself has put on record the lack of preparedness…Rescue and relief work, which should have been taken up immediately was delayed. This led to people being marooned for days without food and water.
The floods have caused massive damage to infrastructure, extensive crop losses, loss of lives and livelihoods. It is deeply unfortunate that Ganjam has been set back by several years due to negligence by the state government,” he alleged.
Naveen said, the previous BJD government had built a community-based resilient disaster management system that was globally acclaimed. He alleged that the present government has been repeatedly mishandling natural calamities, as seen in Ganjam and earlier in Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak and Balasore.
“Incompetence and negligence of a government should never lead to the suffering of its people. The BJP government in the state must take responsibility and fix accountability so that the hard work done and progress achieved by the BJD government over 24 years is not undone in 24 months by the double-engine sarkar,” he said.