Amidst a raging controversy over the sudden release of water from the Narmada dam, which inundated the districts of Narmada, Bharuch, and parts of Vadodara on September 17-19, the Government of Gujarat on Saturday announced a special relief package for farmers hit by the floods, with standing crops destroyed, and property and houses damaged in around 100 villages along the banks of the river.
The Opposition Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have accused the State government of not following the manual for the process of releasing water from the dam. Both Opposition parties termed the floods a “man-made calamity”. The allegedly sudden discharge of water on September 17 flooded the three districts at unprecedented levels.
The Congress and the AAP allege that the State authorities did not release water from September 11 onward, allowing water to accumulate and “artificially overflow” on September 17 to coincide with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birth day.
