FLOODS OCCURRED DUE TO UNPRECEDENTED HEAVY RAINS, NOT MINING ACTIVITIES
Punjab E News (September 6): Punjab Water Resources Minister Sh. Barinder Kumar Goyal, on Saturday, rebutted the remarks of Union Agriculture Minister Sh. Shivraj Singh Chauhan, who alleged that floods in Punjab were triggered by illegal mining.
Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, the Cabinet Minister termed the allegations as baseless and misleading, asserting that floods were caused by record rainfall and unprecedented inflow of water in rivers. “The present focus must remain on relief and rehabilitation of affected families instead of political blame games”, he added.
The Cabinet Minister informed that Punjab witnessed extraordinary discharge of 14.11 lakh cusecs in River Ravi this year, surpassing the 11.2 lakh cusecs recorded in 1988. Strengthening works worth over Rs.200 crore undertaken by the Punjab Government during the last two years ensured that embankments withstood the pressure, with no breaches reported along government-controlled bundhs of River Beas.
Terming the Union Minister’s statement Illogical, the Cabinet Minister clarified that mining is banned in River Ravi within five kilometers of the international border due to Army and BSF restrictions, while River Beas is a declared “Conservation Reserve” where mining is prohibited. No mining exists in Ghaggar River, while in Sutlej, operations are permitted only under approved mine plans and with Environmental Clearance from the State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA). He stressed that regulated mining in Punjab does not endanger river embankments and no mining activity is permitted within 100 meters of flood protection embankments.
Rejecting the Union Minister’s claims, Sh. Barinder Kumar Goyal said that unprecedented rainfall was the sole cause of floods, with Chamba recording 1205 percent, Kangra 275 percent and Pathankot 820 percent above normal on August 25 alone. He pointed out that attributing such natural calamity to illegal mining was unjust to the suffering people of Punjab.
Suggesting the Centre to introspect on unnecessary delays in addressing Punjab’s demands, Sh. Barinder Kumar Goyal said that every year Punjab spends crores of rupees for protecting BSF and army outposts in national interest.
He lamented that Punjab’s proposals for protection of border outposts, vital for BSF and army, are still pending with the Government of India despite requests by the Chief Minister and Chief Secretary of Government of Punjab. Despite in-principle approval by NDMA, only 19 of the 28 proposed works have been cleared so far and release of funds is still awaited, he added.
Strongly criticizing the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) for its discriminatory tactics against Punjab at the behest of the Centre, the Cabinet Minister said that during the technical committee meeting, Punjab had categorically demanded 29,500 cusecs of water for irrigation during the month of June, as the paddy sowing season was underway. Despite repeated letters and requests, Punjab was allocated only 21,000 cusecs of water, against the stipulated norms that mandate supply as per the demand of partner states during the filling period. “Had Punjab been given its rightful share, our irrigation needs would have been fully met and the dams would also have had adequate space to store excess water,” said Goyal.
The Minister highlighted that BBMB has a history of acting arbitrarily, often going silent when Punjab seeks relief, but readily imposing its own decisions when it comes to creating pressure.
Highlighting the long-pending demand of a barrage at Makaura Pattan on River Ravi downstream of Ujh, the Cabinet Minister said the project would harness lean period flows for irrigation, drinking water and groundwater recharge in border areas. He underlined that Punjab holds riparian rights over Ujh waters and has already submitted detailed plans to the Central Water Commission (CWC).
He reiterated that this year’s floods were the result of massive rainfall in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab, coupled with inflows from Pakistan and local streams, yet damages were minimal due to timely strengthening of embankments. The Beas River also recorded historic inflows into Pong Dam, surpassing all previous records.
Prominent amongst others who were present included Chief Engineer (Drainage) S. Hardeep Singh Mendiratta and Chief Engineer (Headquarters) S. Jitender Pal Singh.
