BHUBANESWAR: The BJP on Saturday pilloried Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for visiting Delhi when the State is reeling under flood.‘’The Chief Minister could have avoided the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting when vast areas are inundated by flood waters and thousands of people marooned,’’ senior BJP leader Biswabhusan Harichandan told a media conference here.Harichandan said the NIC meeting was not that important.The Chief Minister’s presence in the State is highly required to monitor the situation when more rainwater is entering the Mahanadi system threatening flood in the command areas.The Chief Minister left for Delhi on Friday to attend the NIC meeting convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.Alleging that the Government lost foresight, the BJP leader said the current flood could have been minimised had the water level in Hirakud dam was managed as per the rule curve.The Government should have anticipated more flood water from Chhattisgarh following prediction of heavy rain on the upper catchments by the weatherman.After opening nine gates, the Government shut down five gates following pressure from the industries.Had the Government opened more gates, the possibility of a major flood could have been averted, he said.Although 14 districts are already affected by flood, he further alleged that the Government is least prepared to face the situation.Of the 120 motorised boats, procured by the Orissa State Disaster Mitigation Authority (OSDMA), 68 boats have gone phut, he said.Alleging that river embankments in the Mahanadi system are weak at 500 locations out of which 28 places are very vulnerable, the former minister sought to know why these embankments were not fortified despite the Chief Minister being in charge of the Water Resources Department.He suggested the Government to go for air- dropping of food and other relief materials to areas cut off from the main land and supply of cooked food wherever possible.Experienced officers should be deployed in strategic locations to monitor the rescue and relief operation.The BJP has also constituted a State-level flood monitoring committee, headed by Harichandan, to oversee relief operation by the party.
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