Nitish Kumar seeks PM’s help to de-silt Ganga river

With more than a dozen districts facing flood fury in the state, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in de-silting of Ganga river, besides closure of the Farakka barrage. Mr Kumar called on the Prime Minister on Tuesday to apprise him of the flood situation in Bihar.

Mr Kumar argued before the Prime Minister that the Farakka barrage had been the cause of silting of the Ganga river, whose water carrying capacity has reduced much.

“The ill-effects of the West Bengal-based Farakka barrage outweighs its benefits. It was due to this barrage that water level in various rivers of Bihar had broken past records, despite them receiving 14 per cent less than normal rains. The Centre should examine the benefits of the barrage and find remedial measures,” Mr Kumar told reporters after meeting the Prime Minister.

The Bihar chief minister also told the Prime Minister that the ambitious Namami Gange project should be linked with better silt management of the river.

He said that if attention is not paid to the situation, then it will also put a question mark on the programme’s success.