Posted on December 12, 2018
Before Durbar move a number of meetings were held to ensure the continued and accelerated dredging of the flood spill channel as well as of the River itself. However, as usual the Durbar Move slows down everything in the valley as the rulers totally forget the poor souls left behind in the valley in almost every respect. Pertinently dredging can only be undertaken in winter when the water level is at its lowest. This is essential to prevent the occurrence of another disastrous flood which the valley faced in 2014. Even during the current year, during the month of June, there was panic regarding a possible flood and the divisional authorities had even taken disaster management measures. Converting Srinagar into a smart city, working out massive development plans and other such things become meaningless unless the city is first secured against natural disasters like a flood. It is an established fact that the newer areas of the city have been blindly developed by the authorities concerned with its development in the flood basin of the River. So the first and foremost task of all these authorities is to ensure the safety of the capital city. The previous Governor had been taking personal interest in the project and had presided over a number of high level meetings on the subject. The present Governor needs to take similar action as he has declared that good governance and responsive administration as his first and foremost priority. Incidentally, there has a suggestion from certain quarters to convert the flood spill channel into a tourist attraction. At the moment, the as river runs very low, it remains dry, full of muck and overgrowth of wild shrubs. People also use it to dump all the waste. The channel could be dug up by 10 to 15 feet from its present bottom and then filled with water from the River with a lock gate at its start. This would allow authorities to keep it full of water like the River in the absence of a flood. Boats could be put into it for taking tourists along its course for joy rides. Authorities may get such a project examined, but in the meantime the dredging for prevention of floods needs to be once again accelerated.
Source: Greater Kashmir
