The West Bengal chief minister also took aim at Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, accusing him of ignoring her pleas for assistance. "Despite repeated attempts to reach out, there has been no response from Jharkhand," she said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee lashed out at the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and Jharkhand, holding them responsible for the severe flooding that has ravaged 11 districts in southern Bengal. Accusing the DVC of releasing over 5 lakh cusecs of water in just three days, CM Banerjee claimed the floods were a "man-made disaster" and warned of cutting all ties with the corporation.
CM Banerjee accused the DVC of releasing large amounts of water from its dams without proper management, leading to widespread inundation. "This is not rainwater; this is water released by the DVC from its dams. This is a man-made flood, and it's extremely unfortunate," Banerjee said during a visit to flood-hit areas in Panskura and Udaynarayanpur.
J&K Elections 2024: Do you know 20% of candidates in 2nd phase face criminal charges?
She further said that the failure to conduct dredging at the DVC dams had significantly reduced their water storage capacity, exacerbating the flooding. "The Centre has failed to dredge the dams, which have seen a 36 percent reduction in capacity. There is a larger conspiracy at play here," CM Banerjee said.
The West Bengal chief minister also took aim at Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, accusing him of ignoring her pleas for assistance. "Despite repeated attempts to reach out, there has been no response from Jharkhand," she said. She said that floods in northern Bengal are often caused by water released from Nepal and Bhutan, while the southern districts are vulnerable to water discharged from Jharkhand.
In a strong statement, CM Banerjee threatened to sever all relations with the DVC if the current situation persists. "We will not maintain any ties with DVC if this continues. The flood situation in Bengal is because of the DVC's unregulated water release to save Jharkhand at our expense," she warned.