‘70% of flashfloods in ICR manmade’
ITANAGAR, 29 Jun: Chief Minister Pema Khandu emphasized on having a GIS-based and scientifically approved drainage master plan for the Itanagar capital region (ICR) to mitigate the recurring flashfloods.
Chairing a meeting convened by the town planning department here on Tuesday, Khandu said that only 30 percent of the flashfloods that occur in the ICR every year during monsoon are natural and the remaining 70 percent are manmade.
He suggested that, while taking the geographical and geological aspects of the region into account for the master plan, a mechanism has to be developed to stop rampant earth-cutting, encroachment on natural streams and disposal of garbage into drains.
He made it clear that the construction of roads and drainages must be included in one package as one project.
“Construction of roads must also include construction of drains along the road by the same executing agency and the contractor,” he said.
Khandu expressed concern over “the confusion in rules of business among engineering departments like urban development, PWD, RWD, PHED, WRD, etc,” which he said led to overlapping and duplicity of several projects. He also expressed concern over the lack of maintenance of completed projects.
He directed the chief secretary to bring clarity in business rules and roles of all such departments, especially those which have engineers in their payroll. “It must be made clear through a notification to the departments of their roles, jurisdiction and responsibilities,” he said.
To avoid overlapping and duplicity of projects, the town planning department can be made the nodal agency to give clearance to all such proposed projects, Khandu said.
Responding to the GIS master plan for drainage system in the capital region, prepared by En-Geo Consultancy & Research Centre, Guwahati, the chief minister directed the department to go through the master plan minutely and in detail.
“The plan is a roadmap to what we need to do. But now we have to concentrate on how to do. This needs brainstorming and coordination amongst all stakeholders, which include the Itanagar Municipal Corporation and the smart city project, besides the line departments,” he opined.
To give the plan a trial, Khandu asked IMC Mayor Tame Phassang and Itanagar MLA Techi Kaso to suggest two sectors – one each in Itanagar and Naharlagun – for construction of drainage systems based on GIS mapping.
A GIS-based Itanagar development master plan, a roadmap for development of the capital region, keeping in view the scenario over the next 25 years, was also presented to the chief minister.
The master plan includes identification and development of residential and industrial areas, sewerage and drainage, solid waste management, tourism, commercial corridor, public and semi-public spaces, etc. It also proposes a detailed plan for new roads, footpaths, interconnecting bridges, flyovers, alternative routes, improvement of road junctions, etc.
Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, Urban Development Minister Kamlung Mossang, MLA Kaling Moyong, the IMC mayor, the Itanagar MLA, the chief secretary, the finance commissioner, the planning commissioner, the UD secretary and other officials of the UD & town planning department attended the meeting. (CM’s PR Cell)
