Abhay Singh, TNN | Sep 3, 2013, 04.46 AM IST
PATNA: The disaster management department (DMD) on Monday maintained that Patna was safe, scoffing at 'unsubstantiated' reports that floodwaters had started entering the state capital.
DMD officer on special duty (OSD) Vipin Kumar Rai said, "Today, there emerged unsubstantiated reports in a section of media. We say that Patna is safe. All steps have been taken to ensure that floodwaters do not enter the state capital."
However, the floods have claimed 160 lives in the state so far. Overall, 54 lakh people in 20 districts have been hit by floods. "The families of the deceased have been paid compensation. Besides, each of the affected families has been given 1 quintal of foodgrains," Rai said, adding that National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have been activated in all the districts to launch rescue operations.
Floodwaters had last entered Patna in 1975 when the entire city, barring its localities from St Joseph's School near Pirbahore police station to Patna City across Ashok Rajpath, was inundated by floodwaters from the Sone. This time, however, media circuits have been fanning fears due to the fact that the Ganga has flooded 12 districts on both its sides from Buxar in the west to Bhagalpur in the east. Reports from Bhagalpur said the town had turned into a veritable island.
Rai, dismissing the fears, said Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) has closed all the sluice gates that discharge sewer into the Ganga. That apart, the water resources department (WRD) and minor irrigation department have also closed the openings in the protection wall along the river's bank, constructed from Patna City along its upstream after the 1975 floods. "The steps have been taken to prevent the entry of the Ganga backwaters into Patna," Rai said. Chief secretary A K Sinha, along with heads of other departments concerned, has been monitoring the situation in Patna, he added.
Patna, traditionally, is endangered by floods in the Sone, Punpun river and the Ganga but, as WRD sources said, the discharge level of the Sone had come down to 70,703 cusec at Indrapuri barrage from the earlier 1.02 lakh cusecs. Punpun is also not flooded but its backwaters from the Ganga entering the river have spread around.
Rai said a complaint had been received that the Ganga floodwaters had seeped into the compound of an apartment. However, it was found that the water leakage was from somewhere else. The collected water was pumped out. However, the situation in Bhagalpur district has worsened.