The central government on Tuesday rejected West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's allegations of discrimination regarding flood management and river cleaning. The government stated that India is already working closely with Bhutan on transboundary river issues and has released more than ₹1,290 crore to the state under flood management schemes.
What were CM Mamata Banerjee's allegations?
Heavy rains in North Bengal on Monday wreaked havoc in several areas, leaving 30 people dead and many missing. Following the incident, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that the central government is not forming the Indo-Bhutan River Commission as demanded by her, and that if this does not happen, North Bengal will continue to suffer the tragedy of floods. She also said that the central government does not provide any funds for flood management and that the Ganga cleaning project has also been stalled.
The Center's response to Mamata Banerjee's allegation
The Union Ministry of Jal Shakti clarified in a post on X that India and Bhutan already have institutional arrangements such as the Joint Expert Group (JGE), Joint Technical Team (JTT), and Joint Expert Team (JET). These teams work on issues such as river erosion, sediment accumulation, and flash floods in North Bengal. The Ministry stated that West Bengal government officials are also included in these joint teams.
At the recent 11th JGE meeting held in Paro, Bhutan, it was decided to conduct a joint study on river erosion and sedimentation on eight additional rivers flowing into the state, namely Hashimara Jhora, Jogikhola, Rokiya, Dhawala Jhora, Gabur Basra, Gabur Jyoti, Pana, and Raidak (First and Second). The West Bengal government will now have to conduct a detailed study on these rivers and present it at the JTT meeting at the end of the year. The Center also stated that work is underway to strengthen Bhutan's hydrological observation network to enable timely flood predictions in rivers flowing into India.
Status on Funding and Ganga Cleaning
The Center clarified that no funding proposals related to flood management projects are pending. ₹1,290 crore has been released to West Bengal under the Flood Management and Border Areas Programme (FMBAP). Responding to Mamata Banerjee's allegations regarding the Ganga cleaning project, the Ministry stated that 62 projects (total cost ₹5,648.52 crore) are being implemented in West Bengal under the Ganga and Namami Gange programs. Of these, 31 projects relate to sewerage infrastructure and 30 to ghats and cremation grounds.
Major river rejuvenation initiatives, such as the Toli Nallah project in Kolkata, have also been approved under the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG). The ministry reiterated that the Centre is actively working with the governments of Bhutan and West Bengal on issues of river management and flood control.
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