DVC ruined Vijayadashmi mood by unilaterally releasing water: CM Banerjee

Kolkata, Oct 3 (IANS) Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday accused the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) of spoiling the festive mood in the state on the occasion of Vijayadashmi on Thursday by unilaterally releasing a huge quantity of water from its dams without giving prior intimation to the West Bengal government.

Chief Minister Banerjee said that the occasion of Vijayadashmi marks the close of Durga Puja, which was a time for joy, cheer, and renewed hope.

Yet, she claimed, instead of allowing the people of West Bengal to conclude the festival in peace, the DVC authorities released 65,000 cusecs of water without any prior notice to the state.

“This reckless act is nothing short of an attempt to inflict misery during our sacred festivities,” the Chief Minister stated on Friday afternoon in a social media post.

According to her, such unilateral action on the part of DVC was shameful and absolutely unacceptable.

“By releasing water without intimation, the DVC has placed millions of lives in Bengal in immediate peril. This is not a natural calamity; it is a disaster manufactured by the DVC,” the Chief Minister said in her social media post.

She also indirectly described the action of the DVC as an attempt at West Bengal’s Bisarjan (immersion), and also cautioned that she would never allow this to happen.

“Let me be clear: I will not allow anyone to carry out a Bisarjan of Bengal. Every conspiracy against our people will be resisted with full force. Truth will prevail over deceit and good will triumph over evil,” the Chief Minister added.

In the past also, the Chief Minister had also been vocal against the DVC on the issue of the release of huge quantities of water from its dams without giving prior intimation to the state government.

Last year, Chief Minister Banerjee had even written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the latter’s intervention is ensuring that DVC did not go for the release of water from its dams without prior intimation to the state government.

However, DVA had always refuted the claims. According to it, waters are always released from the DVC dams based on the discussions in the Damodar Valley Reservoir Regulation Committee (DVRRC), where the West Bengal government always has a representative, and hence the allegation of release of water without giving prior intimation to the state government was baseless.

--IANS

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