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VOL. 28, NO. 02, August 29 , 2008 (Bhadra 13 2065 B.S.) |
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Nature’s Wrath
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Height Of Negligence?
With the breaching in the eastern embankment and changing of its course towards east, Kosi river, which originates in Tibetan Autonomous region of China, and Nepal's Himalayas, has threatened the lives of tens of thousands of people living in Nepal and India. Although rescue and rehabilitation operation conducted by Nepali Army has saved the lives of thousands of people who have been temporarily rehabilitated in different shelters, their future is uncertain. Although Kosi river, one of the mighty rivers of the world, has the history of changing its course frequently, it is yet to be revealed whether the destruction of embankment this time was a result of gross negligence on the part of technicians or just an unavoidable natural occurrence
By KESHAB POUDEL
"Had the Nepali Army's helicopter not rescued us on time, we would have been buried beneath the sand of Saptakosi river somewhere else in Indian or Nepalese territory," Ali Minya, a resident of Western part of Kusaha district. "Nepali Army's helicopter lifted us when we were stranded at the top of the roof of our submerged house," said Minya, 45, who was among the people who were settled at the temporary relief center in Inaruwa, district headquarters of Sunsari district 400 miles east of capital Kathmandu.
Thanks to the NA’s efforts, hundreds of people have already been airlifted and thousands of people received dry food and drinking water at temporary shelters built across the Kosi's embankment.
NA has a long experience of rescue operation at the time of natural calamities. This is the latest one when NA's personnel have been launching their work day and night.
"The river swept away our houses, crops, cattle and everything," said Deven Yadav, 65, a resident of Laukahi village Development Committee. "As our land and house are already covered by sands and boulders, it seems virtually impossible for us to go back again," said Yadav, a displaced living in a temporary shelter in local school.
Along with changing its course, the river has also inundated densely populated human settlements. Even after the diversion of river in its original shape by repairing embankments, it will take decades to make those lands cultivable again.
According to experts, the Kosi river was notorious for shifting, flood devastation and sand deposition over a vast area in north Bihar and Nepal. In the past, the river created havoc in Nepal and India.
Devastation of flood
The devastation is so huge that it will take months to assess the damage. "As the river has completely damaged the house holds and buried the land, we need to search alternative ways to support the people," said Durga Prasad Bhandari, chief district officer of Sunsari district. "We are successful in rehabilitating a large number of displaced population temporarily and we are also receiving relief materials from different agencies."
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NA Chopper: Supplying material |
According to initial report, the flood has washed away crops worth of Rs. 300 million in Sripur, Haripur, Paschim kushaha and Laukaha VDCs mostly affected by inundation.
According to the Home Ministry 40,378 people of 7102 families have been displaced. It informed that 5500 hectares of land, 12 km of black-topped road and 13 km of seasonal road have been destroyed by the flood.
It said that people of Haripir, Sripur Jabdi, Laukahi and Western Kusaha VDCs of Sunsari district have been fully displaced while those of Narsingh, Basantapur and Ghuski VDCs of the same district have been badly affected by the inundation. The infrastructures of these VDCs including roads, schools, irrigation, drinking water system and local factories have been devastated.
According to district agriculture office, paddy worth of Rs.180 million, vegetables worth of 24 million banana crops worth of Rs 4.5 million and jute crops with of Rs 20 million were damaged by the swollen river. Fish farming worth of Rs. 25 million was washed out.
The renovation of destroyed embankment has already begun. According to Anil Pokharel, deputy director of Irrigation Department, the renovation work has begun. The office said the flood damaged 2064 hectares of cultivated land in Haripur, 1892 in Sripur, 860 hectares in Paschim Kushaha and 776 hectare of cultivated land in Laukahi.
”The river has buried most of the cultivable land in Haripur and Sripur. The land will no longer be fertile even if the river ebbed back to its original course," said Sarbajit Yadav chief of district agriculture office.
Negligence or Natural
Unlike in the past, there was no huge rainfall in the catchments areas of Kosi and the level of water at the time of breaching of the eastern embankment was below 150,000 cusec meter. Then, how the embankment was damaged suddenly triggering havoc in eastern Nepal? Is it natural or negligence? Given the news reports published in
various newspapers, it seems the technicians failed to carry out their duty.
Nepalese officials and Indian officials indulge in the blame game. Nepalese officials blame Indian technicians for not repairing the embankment beforehand while Indian officials accuse Nepalese side of failing to provide security to their technicians. They demanded the full security to their staffs to start the renovation works and even forwarded the idea of using the trained Indian army personnel to start the early
renovation works.
"It is sheer negligence of the technicians who always undermine the renovation works," said Bhutani Sada, 66, of Shreepur village development committee citing the recent report of sacking of half a dozen officials from the Kosi project by Indian government.
Along with washing out residents and land, the flood also washed out about 12 kilometers road of East West high way cutting off eastern region from rest of the country by road. Even communication line was cut off due to damage in optical fibers.
The Road Department has already declared that it will take months to repair the road. Now the possibility of road link is being searched by installing Belly Bridge at Barahachhetra to restore the traffic between eastern Nepal and rest of the country.
Blame Game
A high-level Nepal government team that inspected areas devastated by the flood in Kosi river, has held India responsible for the havoc.
''The devastation took place as the Indian side did not carry out repair and maintenance work on the Kosi barrage and the embankment along the river, thereby violating the Nepal-India Kosi agreement," said Khom Raj Dahal, Deputy Director General of the Department of Water Induced Disaster Prevention to the media.
" India is entirely responsible for repair and maintenance work and operation of the barrage, as per the bilateral agreement signed in 1954. More than 60,000 people were displaced when at least four villages were completely under the flood due to the collapse of Saptakoshi embankment," said a senior Nepalese official.
"Every year in the past Indian side used to do at least some maintenance work. But this year they did not carry out the repairs," Dahal said. "This was the main reason why the Kosi breached the embankment and submerged about 10,000 hectares of cultivated land and villages."
Indian side used to contact the Regional Directorate of the Department of Irrigation (DoI) in Biratnagar. The DoI plays a facilitating role as and when requested by Indian teams. "But this year they did not contact the DoI regional office" Dahal added.
However, the Indian officials blamed Nepal authorities for the disaster. "The Indian technical team mobilized required resources and has remained in readiness to carry out the required work to strengthen the embankment but it was prevented from reaching the site. As a consequence, thousands of people in Nepal and India have been forced to suffer a calamity that could have been avoided," said a press release issued by Indian embassy.
Mobilization of Army
At a time when concerns are growing about the need to take immediate steps, Indian officials are reportedly circulating the idea to call on trained Indian Army personnel to start the emergency reconstruction works arguing that civil authority doesn't have such
capability to immediately start the large scale reconstruction work.
According to a report published in Gorkhapatra on August 23, Indian delegation led by high level experts and engineers recommended secretly the need to mobilize trained army expert to immediately start renovation work to contain the loss of life and property.
According to them, it is impossible for civil authority to start the reconstruction work. According to Nepali officials, Indian side has not disclosed their suggestion publicly. Indian officials reportedly forwarded this proposal to New Delhi and are awaiting response. According to Gorhapatra, the government owned newspaper, the Indian high level technical team which recently visited the flood sites include the engineers of Ganga
Flood I.P. Kumar H.S Chaudhari.
In his visit to flood affected areas, Nepal’s Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Jaya Prakash Gupta, however, demanded that the Kosi renovation works be carried out under India's central government and not under the Bihar state. "This is the responsibility of India's central government. Deputy prime minister and foreign minister Upendra Yadav
will pay his visit to India shortly and discuss this matter with India's central leaders.” (Gorkhapatra, August 25).
In his recent inspection to the flood hit areas, prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda referred the Kosi agreement as a historical blunder and suggested the need to sign new agreement.
Kosi's History
Kosi river is bounded on the north by the ridge separating it from the Tsangpo ( Brahmaputra), on the South by the Ganga, on the east by the ridge separating it from the Mahananda and on the west by the ridge separating it from the Gandak/Burhi Gandak.
According to water resource expert Dr. A. B. Thapa, Kosi river rises at an altitude over 7000 meter in the Himalayas. The Kosi, though little known outside, after its debouch into the plains is the third biggest of the Himalayan rivers, being next only to the Indus and Brahmaputra. The Kosi catchments comprise the Himalayas in the eastern parts of Nepal and Tibet. It can be divided into two distinct parts, on lying in Tibet across the great Himalayan range and other to the south of it in Nepal.
The total length of the Kosi river is 720 km draining areas of 92,538 sq km in Tibetan Autonomous Region of China, Nepal and India up to its confluence with the Ganga at Kursela. Kosi occupies 30,800 sq km in Tibet, 41,233 sq km in Nepal and 20,405 sq km in India.
In order to provide an immediate relief, the Kosi project comprising gradient control by Hanumanagar barrage near Bhimnagar and river confinement by marginal embankments was implemented. The river observations have, however, now revealed great danger to which the developed countryside outside the embankments will be exposed in future.
Experts predicted long time back that the need to study the time frame of the likely breaches in the embankments and their possible locations so that suitable strategy to avoid any sudden catastrophe can be evolved and put in practice in time. However, all ignored such warnings.
Agreement on Renovation
A high level Indian delegation led by senior engineer has already reached to the site. Higher level Nepalese and Indian delegation agreed, on Thursday, the need to start the construction work soon.
The renovation work will start in three phase. First, they will try to divert the river from eastern flank to its natural course in west. To prevent the further damage on embankment, they will construct more spurs. By the beginning of next monsoon session, the work to renovation will complete.
Bihar's Trauma
In Bihar, the Kosi River is wreaking havoc in Supaul, Madhepura and Araria districts. India’s Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav made an aerial survey of the flood hit areas.
According to Indian news agency ANI's report on August 25, Railway Minister and former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav will brief Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Bihar floods and will also ask him to visit the flood-affected areas in his state.
"In a noble gesture, Lalu has made available the services of the Railways to carry food supplies and relief material free of cost in the flood-affected areas. During his meeting, he will inform the Prime Minister about the calamity and the failures of the State government presently run by the BJP-JD-U combine," the news report says.
From Nepal to Bihar, the Kosi devastation has created intensive debates about how it happens. It is yet to know whether it is natural or negligence.
