Governor firm on probe into Mahanadi flood

BHUBANESWAR: After the disaster, unquiet flows the Mahanadi. With the controversy, whether the recent flood was man-made or not, refusing to die down, it has virtually led to a standoff between Governor M C Bhandare and the State Government.The Government has declined to set up an expert committee as suggested by the Governor to get to the bottom of the problem. And Bhandare is not letting it go. On Friday, he reiterated that an independent expert panel should study whether the deluge was an accident or a mistake. “I do not say who is at fault. It may be accident or a mistake. We must see it through an independent body in a transparent manner so that one can go to the root-cause of the floods,” he told mediapersons at Raj Bhavan. The Governor felt that the cause of the flood should be ascertained as it caused massive damage to human lives and properties.Bhandare is not alone in suggesting a probe. What has come as a further embarrassment for the Government is the fact that from the beginning, the Congress and the BJP have described the flood as man-made which took place because of mismanagement of Hirakud reservoir water.Bhandare had earlier sought a report from the State Government and suggested formation of an expert panel to verify the allegation of water mismanagement at Hirakud reservoir.The Government ignored the suggestion saying there is one such panel already formed in 2009 which can inquire into the alleged violation in rule curve of Hirakud reservoir.The Government maintained in the report submitted to the Governor that there has been no violation of the rule curve. Instead, the flood in the Mahanadi was due to excess rainfall in Chhattisgarh, which was located in its upper catchment area, Water Resources Secretary Suresh Mohapatra had said in his report to the Governor.Sources said during a meeting with Chief Secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik on Thursday, the Governor had wanted to know why the Government is reluctant to set up a committee. He also questioned how a technical committee, headed by engineer-in-chief of Water Resources department, could probe alleged mistakes committed by his own department.The Congress has condemned the attitude of the State Government. The Governor can certainly suggest to the Government on policy which should be given due importance, senior Congress leader and former law minister Narasingh Mishra remarked.But it is not the first time that the suggestion of the Governor has been set aside by the Government. It had ignored three recommendations by the Governor to table the special report in the Assembly by the Lokpal on land acquisition for Vedanta University.