Govt readies for rains

GANDHINAGAR, June 8: In view of the impending monsoon, the government has geared up its state-wide flood control network, with 81 new flood-...

GANDHINAGAR, June 8: In view of the impending monsoon, the government has geared up its state-wide flood control network, with 81 new flood-control cells being created in different parts of the state and also the number of hotlines and wireless sets being increased to effectively control and monitor the flood situation.

This time, the government has decided to bring dams of even minor irrigation projects under the flood control network. Till now, wireless stations were being set up at only major and medium irrigation dams to monitor rainfall, floods, and water level in the upstream catchment area of the dams. There are 161 major and medium irrigation schemes and 28 minor irrigation schemes in the state.

Addressing a news conference here on Monday, Minister for Narmada and Major Irrigation Schemes Jay Narayan Vyas said it was also decided to install 10 more hotlines at the various flood control cells, and five more hotlines at the state-level central flood control cell in Gandhinagar.

For the first time, all the district-level flood control cells will have fax machines so as to help them send relevant data and information to the central flood control room which has already started functioning from June 1.

Vyas said the flood control cell will function round-the-clock for four months of the monsoon, with technical officers and administrative staff working in three shifts every day. After collecting details from taluka and district-level flood control offices, the main flood control room in Gandhinagar would convey the same to the Revenue and Irrigation Departments to initiate further necessary actions.

There are two Central Water Commission8217;s offices, in Ahmedabad and Surat. These two offices have set up 33 wireless stations at the important major river basins within the State and 40 outside it. These major rivers are Narmada, Mahi, Tapi, Sabarmati, Banas and Damanganga.

The minister said in all, 432 wireless sets, including 274 installed by the state home department, 85 by the irrigation department and 73 by the Central Water Commission, were kept ready at the wireless stations at different dams in the state.

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medium and minor irrigation schemes, which include flood warning arrangement with the meteorological department, filling of reservoirs in respect of the monsoon position and so on.