Opposition slams CM over handling of floods

TRIVANDRUM: Kerala’s Congress-led opposition has slammed the state’s communist government over its poor management of the 2018 floods ater a national auditor’s report.

The Controller and Auditor General of India (CAG), in its report published this week, says the sudden release of water from reservoirs aggravated the flood situation.

The deluge of the century had claimed 483 lives, washed away thousands of homes and displaced a large number of people.

At least 15 people are still missing.

The leader of the opposition in the state assembly, VD Satheesan, said the CAG had endorsed what they had said about the “tragic failure” in the dam management then.

As the water level in the major dams started rising fast and people started panicking, the then power minister MM Mani had said they couldn’t act on media reports.

The authorities opened the floodgates of the reservoirs while incessant heavy rains continued to pound the state which led to the overflowing of rivers downstream.

The CAG also pointed out failure in issuing mandatory alerts when the situation deteriorated and the dams opened shuters releasing water into the rivers.

“The responsible authorities failed to issue mandatory alerts or warnings when the rain situation deteriorated,” it said.

“Siltation studies also found significant levels of siltation in many dams and works were very slow.”

The report running into 269 pages also says most of the flaws remain unaddressed and the situation in the state remains precarious.

It says none of the 275 flood forecasting stations in India is in Kerala and the government had not furnished the list of reservoirs, cities and towns requiring them.

“Communication infrastructure was nonfunctional in some areas including dam sites and government offices during or subsequent to the 2018 floods,” it says.

“Continuing presence of encroachments on Cheruthoni river bed obstructed the free flow of the river resulting in damages.”

Though 7,124 works of immediate repair and restoration of damages ater the floods were approved for execution, 18 per cent of them are pending.

It added the Kerala Water Policy 2008 was not updated in accordance with the National Water Policy.

The report said that only six rain gauges were in place instead of 32 and highlighted unauthorised construction and mining in hilly terrains.