Guwahati flooding: CM Sarma seeks solution with Meghalaya; Gaurav Gogoi slams BJP

Guwahati, August 7: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has stressed on inter-state coordination with neighbouring Meghalaya to mitigate the perennial problem of urban, flash flooding in Guwahati.

Chairing a meeting with all the stakeholders to chalk out a comprehensive plan to alleviate citizens’ woes on Tuesday evening, the Chief Minister took stock of the situation that had led to unprecedented urban flooding of the capital city on August 5.

“Yesterday, Ri-Bhoi district in Meghalaya received record rainfall of nearly 100 mm. Heavy rainfall in the hills along with rains of 60 mm in Guwahati. This 90-minutes of rain was nearly 25% of rainfall the city receives during the entire monsoon season. This resulted in extraordinary flash floods in parts of the state capital,” he posted on a popular micro-blogging website, post the meeting.

The Chief Minister further informed that plans are afoot to work out a “comprehensive solution” to the issue based on “early warning and quick response mechanism”.

“We will also be in touch with the Meghalaya Government to implement a real-time coordination protocol,” his post added.

Meanwhile, the woeful condition of the people of Guwahati were highlighted in the Lok Sabha by Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi on Tuesday.

Taking a dig at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, the Jorhat MP pointed out at the “utter mismanagement” of the city administration and urged the Central government to work in tandem with the state government to address the issue.

He, however, touched upon the sentiments of Urban Affairs Minister Ashok Singhal, who had said on Tuesday that the severe water flow from hilly Meghalaya exacerbated the urban flood situation in the city.

“No measures were taken to resolve the issue. Due to its unique geographical location, Guwahati is also prone to landslides,” the press quoted the MP as saying.