Howrah needs proper planning before heavy rains start: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee to HRBC officials

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday (August 24) directed the state officials to take precautionary measures regarding flooding due to heavy rains in Howrah, Hooghly and South 24 Parganas, asking them that "Howrah needs a proper planning before heavy rains start over the next few days." 

The Chief Minister said, "Amidst the pandemic, we must take precautionary measures regarding flooding due to heavy rains in Howrah, Hooghly and South 24 Parganas. If Jharkhand releases water, there will not be waterlogging as before as we have put in place a mechanism to prevent waterlogging. Rivers in Jharkhand have not undergone dredging. If they release waters in huge amounts, it will flood several districts of Bengal. Police will do miking in places of alert."

Mamata Banerjee further said, "Howrah needs a proper planning before heavy rains start over the next few days. The road in Howrah belonging to HRBC, the pitch road has completely come off. Now, they are telling the state government to repair the roads."

"We have helped you set up a toll. The toll is collected to help you in repairs. Recently, I saw the road condition very bad, it was repaired by Municipality after I pointed out. Keep your eyes open. If it doesn’t belong to us atleast pass on the message. Bad road conditions will not be tolerated. Must be pursued by police, district authorities."

Notably, the West Bengal Assembly will begin next month with all COVID-19 safety norms in place. The state government has sent a proposal for resuming the Assembly either from the first or the second week of September, said a government official, adding that safety measures will be ensured.

Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee reportedly confirmed it and said plans are being chalked out for the commencement of the session. He told PTI, "The session will start either in the first or the second week of the next month. We are working on how to have the sessions by maintaining COVID-19 protocols. We are yet to receive a proposal from the state government."

Earlier in the day, the West Bengal CM appealed to the Centre to postpone the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) and the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation.

In a series of tweets on Monday morning, Banerjee said, "In our last video conference with the Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodiJi, I had been vocal against the UGC guidelines mandating completion of terminal examinations in Universities/Colleges by the end of September 2020, which had a huge potential to put student lives at risk."

"Now with the directive of @EduMinOfIndiato conduct NEET, JEE 2020 in Sep, I would again appeal to the Centre to assess the risk and postpone these examinations until the situation is conducive again. It is our duty to ensure a safe environment for all our students," she said in another Twitter post.

The Supreme Court had dismissed a plea seeking the postponement of JEE (Main) April 2020 and NEET (Undergraduate) examinations, which are scheduled to be held in September, amid a spurt in COVID-19 cases, saying the precious year of students "cannot be wasted" and "life has to go on".

The JEE (Main) is scheduled to be held between September 1 and 6, while the JEE (Advanced) on September 27. The NEET will be held on September 13.