While flood water in Srinagar has begun to recede, and people are readying to resume their routine lives, attention of observers again goes to some fundamental questions related to the floods and the havoc caused to the State. They are probing the question why the State Government had not geared up to meet natural calamities like floods, fire, earthquake or epidemics. The impression carried by most observers is that the State Government has been complacent in foreseeing the disasters. There has been the talk of State Disaster Response Force in Srinagar and in Jammu. Finger has been raised on inactivity of this Force during current floods.
More study into this situation reveals a different story. What has come to light is that the State Government has been conscious of the disasters that can befall without any prior notice and that the state machinery should be ready to meet the challenge. It was in the light of this apprehension that the State Government had approached the Ministry of Water Resources and Central Water Commission (CWC) way back in 2009 with comprehensive plans for handling water resources in all the three regions of the State in a way that rivers and main nullahs are contained and their embankments strengthened and raised to prevent overflow of their banks. But the Ministry and CWC just sat upon the files and did not respond and show eagerness in supporting the State. After all, the matter boiled down to funding. The State Government believes that unwillingness of the Central Government to meet these projects left it handicapped and nothing could be done to ensure that flood waters did not at any time bring disaster to the state.
To cite an example, following the devastating flash flood in Leh in 2010, the Union Ministry of Water Resources sanctioned 100 crore rupees for flood protection works along the nullahs in Leh so that the tragedy does not recur. Out of this amount just 10 crores were released and then nothing came. The plan of containing the nullahs could not be brought about. Likewise projects of strengthening the banks of Tawi River in Jammu from Sidhra to the 4th Bridge and similar project for Jhelum River in the Valley was submitted to the Central Government. In regard to River Chenab also, almost same kind of project was forwarded to the centre some years ago. All of these projects have been collecting dust in the office of the Union Ministry for Water Resource and CWC. When this is the situation, how can one expect the State Government with so meager financial status to undertake massive plan of managing the rivers and nullahs when in spate owing to heavy rains. In 2009 the Irrigation and Flood Control Department of the State submitted a 2200 crore project to the Union Ministry of Water Resource. The project included many restoration works including improvement of Jhelum’s existing dredging of outfall channels, protection and anti-erosion works and increasing hydraulic efficiency. The file went on collecting dust. However, the Ministry had few years ago approved only a part of the project and for the major components of the project, it raised several queries, which were answered by the concerned authorities showed no interest later on.
More recently, the same Ministry conveyed sanction of 400 crore rupees for managing the Siachin River in Ladakh. This river often changes its course because of the melting of snow in the glaciers which releases large amount of water into the river and the river then begins to change its course so often making some arable lands desert of providing lands for tilling. It was found that the river needed to be controlled and stop it from ruining the arable lands. Even in this case no action has been taken and the project has been abandoned to its fate.
Now that the flash floods have wrought havoc to the entire State and the floods of this magnitude have reappeared after a lapse of 109 years, it is rather unjust to accuse the State Government of all that has gone wrong. The State Government is not in a position to undertake all these mega projects on its own because ours is a poor state. Thus we find that owing to non availability of funds, most of the projects pertaining to containing water bodies in the State within limits failed miserably. Obviously, if money had been released at proper time and the work of embankment etc. conducted as also of drugging the Jhelum, perhaps the people of the State would have been saved the tragedy that has befallen them.
Now a lesson has to be leant from this tragic experiment. The Centre must open all those schemes and projects of water management submitted by the State Government to the Ministry of Water Resources. These must be re-examined and implemented without loss of time. In fact regular funds should flow to the State for taking care of all water bodies during normal as well as abnormal times. Flood controlling has to be made effective and regular.
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