Nitish calls for international cooperation to check flood menace

Patna, Dec 9 (UNI) Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today called upon the scientists and experts to explore ways and means to tame the annual flooding that destroy life and property of north Bihar in every monsson.

He also underlined the need for huge investment to stop the perennial floods and urged various internatinal agencies to ponder over it so that people of his state could live safely from natural calamity.

Addressing a seminar on natural disaster here the Chief Minister said his government had initiated steps both short term and long term to minimise damange from flood in north Bihar as hundreds of lives and properties worth crores of rupees are lost every year.

"A total of 17 per cent flood prone landscape of country exists in Bihar while almost 55 per cent of its people are affected by floods every year", he said adding gravity of the situation warranted some remedial measures on priority basis.

Mr Kumar said the government had also prepared an action plan to meet the challenges of floods through interlinking and dredging of rivers besides raising their embankments. "Investment of huge funds is required to execute the plan and financial assistance from the Centre besides international institutions like Asian Development Bank and World Bank would of vital importance in this regard'', he added.

"A high dam should be constructed in Nepal to check the perennial flood problem in north Bihar as majority of the rivers originated there cause problem for us", the Chief Minister said adding the Centre should raise the issue with Nepal in this connection.

Terming the flood fury in north Bihar this year as one of the worsts in recent memory, Mr Kumar said the government had succeeded in providing succour to the victims through crisis management skill with effective utilisation of state government machineries and agencies operating in this arena.

UNI