Mamata Banerjee blames Bhutan for North Bengal floods, demands compensation

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the Bhutan government of releasing water that caused the recent severe flooding in North Bengal, and demanded that the neighbouring country pay compensation for the losses incurred.

“For a long time, we had been insisting on the formation of an Indo-Bhutan River Commission with representation from the state government. Because of the water released from Bhutan, North Bengal faced such a disaster. We want the Bhutan government to pay compensation for the losses,” the Chief Minister said, in Nagrakata in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal on Monday afternoon.

She claimed that because of the continuous pressure from the West Bengal government, the Union government has decided to convene a meeting on this issue on October 16, and she would send a representative from the state government there.

Targeting the Centre for not paying the dues for crisis management in case of natural calamities like floods, Mamata Banerjee said, “We have to bear the entire expenditure in such cases since nothing comes from New Delhi.”

The Chief Minister announced that the state government would provide Rs 1.20 lakh to each household whose homes were destroyed in the floods and landslides earlier this month.

“We will repair the damaged bridges shortly. In case of damage to crops, the landowners concerned will be provided with compensation under the agriculture insurance scheme. Those affected will not have to bear any sort of financial burden since the state government will do whatever is necessary,” the Chief Minister added.

She also said that many people have lost important documents following the flood and landslide. She assured them that the state government was taking full responsibility for providing them with duplicates of such lost documents.

On the occasion, she handed over appointment letters for home guards in the state police to one family member from each of the 10 families in the region, which faced loss of lives because of the flood and landslides. She said other affected families would also receive appointment letters in due course.

Additionally, each affected family will be provided with a compensation of Rs 5,00,000 by the state government.

IANS