Jalpaiguri flash flood: Chief Secy seeks report from District Magistrate

Kolkata, Oct 6 (IANS) In wake of complaints of severe lapses in security arrangements at Mal River bank at Malbazar in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district where thousands of people assembled on Wednesday night for idol immersion on Vijaya Dashami, Chief Secretary, H.K. Dwivedi has sought a detailed report on this count from District Magistrate, Moumita Godara Basu.

On Wednesday night, when a sudden flash flood had hit the Mal River at around 9 p.m., only eight staff of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were present at the bank, a number highly inadequate in consideration to the huge number of people assembled there. Already eight people are reported killed, 13 critically injured and several missing following the accident.

The second complaint was that even the eight NDRF personnel present there could not immediately start the rescue operations since they were not carrying searchlights, and it was only when these were brought later from the nearby NDRF office that the rescue process could start.

The Chief Secretary has directed the Jalpaiguri District Magistrate to detail all these in her report which will have to reach the state Secretariat within 48 hours.

At the same time, he has also directed all the District Magistrates to review the security arrangement at all the scheduled immersion points considering that the state administration has allowed immersion till October 8.