Bhubaneswar: With the monsoon gathering pace, the Odisha government on Friday stepped up its flood preparedness by conducting a high-level review of reservoir operations, river monitoring and flood forecasting to minimise risks across the state’s major river basins.
Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister Saswata Mishra and Principal Secretary, Water Resources, Shubha Sarma chaired the meeting at Secha Sadan here, where officials assessed the flood situation in the Mahanadi, Brahmani and Baitarani river systems and reviewed the state’s preparedness to tackle any emerging flood threat.
The meeting focused on the scientific management of reservoir water, continuous monitoring of river levels and strengthening the flood forecasting mechanism to ensure timely action.
Officials also reviewed the strategy for the regulated release of water from reservoirs to prevent flooding in vulnerable downstream areas.
According to officials, special emphasis was placed on ensuring that water discharge from reservoirs is carefully planned and coordinated to minimise the impact on habitations located downstream. The review also covered inter-departmental coordination, real-time monitoring of river flows and the dissemination of flood alerts.
The state government stressed the need to strengthen all preparedness measures and maintain round-the-clock surveillance of river systems as the monsoon progresses. Public safety, particularly in flood-prone downstream regions, was identified as the top priority.
Engineer-in-Chief of the Water Resources Department, Er. Dillip Kumar Rout, and senior chief engineers attended the meeting and briefed the senior officials on reservoir levels, river conditions and the status of flood management measures across the state.
