Criticism won't help, stand by people in distress: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said instead of merely criticising the state's relief and rehabilitation efforts for people affected by natural calamities in north Bengal, one should stand by those in distress.

Banerjee requested neighbouring Bhutan to monitor the discharge of water after heavy rains to prevent flooding in the downstream areas located in Bengal and said the Centre should take up the issue with the country.

Addressing an administrative meeting in Darjeeling Hills, the CM said her government was undertaking reconstruction work on a war footing as several houses, health centres and administrative buildings were damaged in Mirik, parts of Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and other areas.

"Mere criticism (of the state's relief and rescue measures) won't help in mitigating the miseries of people. One should stand by the affected physically and extend help," she said, but did not name anyone.

"I am not ready to put our monetary resources into water in this way to cope with flooding every time. I urge the Centre to request Bhutan to initiate steps so that rivers originating from there don't inundate districts in north Bengal after heavy downpour in catchment areas every time. A way out has to be found and explored involving experts," she said.

The chief minister also flagged "large volumes of water discharge from reservoirs like Panchet and Maithon" following heavy rainfall in the catchment areas of Bihar and Jharkhand, leading to flooding in low-lying parts of south Bengal.

"The Centre is indifferent to the issue of recurrent flooding in both parts of Bengal and never takes initiatives to dredge rivers such as Bhagirathi, Torsha and Teesta," she said.

Referring to the floods that occurred before Durga Puja, Banerjee said the situation was aggravated by water discharge from DVC reservoirs, but the state managed to control it.

"We must stay alert during Diwali, Kali Puja and Chhath," she said.

Turning to reports of alleged atrocities on Bengali-speaking migrants in BJP-ruled states, Banerjee said, "Our people should not be attacked for visiting other states or for speaking in their mother tongue."

"The migrants, having returned to their native place, have been enrolled in the Karmashree social welfare project for labourers," she said, alleging that seven migrant workers from the state had died in a fire in Bengaluru.

"We don’t see any initiative from the respective state governments when incidents involving people from Bengal take place. On the contrary, whenever a single tragedy occurs here involving a migrant from other states, we take every responsibility. Ours is a human approach," she said.

Banerjee also raised the issue of a Bengali-speaking woman being wrongly pushed back to Bangladesh by Delhi Police, saying, "The Bangladesh court confirmed she is an Indian citizen."

"In Bengal, people speak their respective mother tongues — Nepali, Rajbanshi, Santhali, Urdu, Hindi and Bengali. There is no discrimination for speaking one’s language. We protect everyone, as India exemplifies unity in diversity," she said.

The chief minister urged people to contribute to the newly formed West Bengal State Disaster Management Authority’s relief fund and asked Power Minister Aroop Biswas to read out its account details.

"We are not begging for money, we will manage," she said in an apparent dig at the BJP-led Centre.

The CM announced Rs 5 lakh to the SDMA relief fund "from the royalty of my books", while all the ministers in the state cabinet are donating Rs 1 lakh each.

Banerjee had earlier claimed that the Centre had not released a single paisa to help the state cope with natural calamities in north Bengal.

She requested Christian missionaries to extend help and support to the administration in the nearest calamity-hit spot in their respective areas.

Pointing out that the state provides crop insurance money to farmers, she asked the district magistrates of the affected areas to prepare a report listing the details of losses and send it to the agriculture department.

The CM said the state has spent Rs 7,000 crore for agriculture development in north Bengal.

Banerjee said the government has opened 46 new Sufal Bangla outlets for selling vegetables and perishable items at affordable prices.

"We have sent 500 quintals of potatoes to these outlets following the landslide and floods," she informed.