Malda: Bengal govt, with help from Centre, is set to take up an ambitious project to redirect Ganga in Malda back to its former course.In Malda to conduct an aerial survey of flood-affected Manikchak and Ratua blocks of Malda, chief secretary Manoj Agarwal said, “In the last 50 years, the river Ganga has changed its course and shifted 6 km to its left. Currently, the distance between the Ganga and the Fulahar (a branch of Mahananda) is only 750 metres.” Pointing out that this could be disastrous for Bengal, Agarwal said, “If this trend continues, the two rivers will merge, triggering a massive disaster in which the entire district, railways, and roads will be inundated, and connectivity between north and south Bengal will be snapped.”Agarwal held a meeting with the district administration and representatives of state govts of Bihar and Jharkhand, alongside experts from IIT Kanpur, IIT Roorkee, and IIT Patna.Agarwal later said, “On Oct 27, we will attend a meeting of the Ganga Flood Control Board in Delhi, chaired by Union Jalshakti minister CR Patil. All stakeholders will participate, and the chief minister of Bengal will also be present. Today’s meeting was part of formulating our proposal for that session.”Agarwal said the erosion protection initiative will proceed in three phases. First, nine spurs will be constructed along the banks of Ganga — four in Bihar and five in Bengal. Bihar has already given its approval for this step. Second, the river will be redirected back to its former course near Sakrigali in Jharkhand. This requires dredging and excavating a new channel, for which Jharkhand govt must give its nod.Third, Kosi, which merged with Fulahar to cause widespread devastation this year, will be separated.“The pilot project to excavate the river channel will cost Rs 50 crore,” Agarwal said and added, “The work must be completed before onset of the next monsoon.”
