Yogi government begins preparing for floods now

Lucknow, June 17: As the second wave of the pandemic recedes, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has started making preparations for flood control, especially in the eastern part of the state.

According to a government spokesperson, out of the 75 districts, 45 are vulnerable to floods. Among them, 24 are very sensitive, 16 are sensitive and five are normal.

The weather experts have predicted a 'bountiful' monsoon this year.

"To reduce the impact of floods, the government has already repaired dams in vulnerable districts. Sand bags and bamboo carts, needed during flooding in sensitive places, have been stocked in sufficient quantity.

"Flood control rooms and wireless centres have been set up to work 24x7 for dealing with an emergency. The central flood control room has been set up in Lucknow. Guards have been deployed for surveillance of sensitive places and generators and petromax have been arranged for night monitoring," the spokesperson said.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed concerned ministers and officials to monitor the situation in all sensitive districts and camp there as well.

Dredging of rivers has been carried out in some places, and CCTV cameras have been installed at the headquarters for effective monitoring, he added.

"A major step taken by the state government was to increase the budget for flood management. Against the previous Samajwadi Party government's annual provision of Rs 382 crore for flood control between 2014 and 2017, the Yogi Adityanath government has earmarked Rs 1,058.56 crore for 2019-20 and 2021-22," the spokesperson said.

It is noteworthy that in 2013, the total flood affected area of the state was 2,336,992 hectares whereas the total cultivable land affected was 1,541,373 hectares, which dropped to 1,46,953 and 6,886 hectares respectively in 2020. Besides, the affected land included ones due to erosion and not by floods.