Dam breach in Chhattisgarh: death toll rises to 5; CM flags lack of regular inspections

Raipur, Sep 4 (PTI) The death toll of the flash flood caused by a dam breach in Chhattisgarh's Balrampur district rose to five on Thursday with the recovery of the body of a boy, officials said, adding that search is on for two missing persons.

Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai expressed dismay over the incident and blamed it on lack of regular inspection by field officials.

The breach in the Lutti (Satbahini) reservoir in Dhaneshpur village occurred late Tuesday night following heavy rainfall in the region, Collector Rajendra Katara had said earlier. Water from the reservoir, built in the early 1980s, descended through the breach onto nearby houses and agricultural fields, he said.

The body of a boy, one of three missing persons, was recovered on Thursday, while search for the other two was still underway, officials said.

Chairing a review meeting of the Water Resources Department at Mantralaya Mahanadi Bhavan in the state capital, chief minister Sai expressed deep displeasure over the dam breach and said such an incident will not be tolerated under any circumstances in the future, a government statement said.

Field-level officers and staff have been failing to conduct regular site inspections which led to this incident, he said, asking all officials to ensure regular inspections of dams and other related structures.

The CM also stressed the need of strict compliance with the provisions of the Dam Safety Act, 2021 and called for effective coordination with district administrations, the statement added.

Sai also directed the Water Resources Department to prepare a concrete action plan to bridge the gap between target irrigation capacity and actual irrigation capacity.

Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain, Principal Secretary to the CM Subodh Kumar Singh and Water Resources Department Secretary Rajesh Sukumar Toppo among others were present at the meeting, the statement said. PTI TKP KRK