Chhattisgarh CM pulls up officials for inspection lapses after Balrampur dam breach kills five, warns of zero tolerance for negligence

RAIPUR: Day after five persons were killed in a flash flood caused due to breach of a small dam in Chhattisgarh’s Balrampur district on Tuesday late, chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Thursday expressed deep displeasure over the breach of the Lutti dam, stating that field-level officers were failing to conduct regular site inspections, which had led to the incident. Issuing a stern warning, he said such a mistake will not be tolerated under any circumstances in the future. He directed all officials to continuously visit the field and ensure regular inspection of dams and other related structures. Bodies of four persons including two children and women were fished out from the waterbody on Wednesday while another one was recovered on Thursday, while two children are still missing. The Lutti dam collapsed and flood waters washed away a family sleeping at their home. Villagers alleged they had earlier complained about seepage in the dam but claimed no preventive action was taken. Chief minister Sai chaired a detailed review meeting on Thursday with the officials of water resources department in Raipur and he directed to give special attention to the maintenance and repair of irrigation projects, assess the water storage capacity of all dams, review the current irrigation status, and monitor the progress of upcoming projects.

CM Sai stressed strict compliance with the provisions of the Dam Safety Act, 2021 and called for effective coordination with district administrations. During the meeting, CM Sai directed the department to prepare a concrete action plan to bridge the gap between target irrigation capacity and actual irrigation capacity.