India should take diplomatic initiatives to stop Iran-Israel conflict: Mamata

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday expressed concern over the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict and urged the Centre to take diplomatic initiatives to help end the hostilities between the two West Asian nations. The conflict has seen hundreds of missiles and drones exchanged between Israel and Iran since tensions escalated over a week ago, with the situation worsening significantly following the US bombing of three major Iranian nuclear sites on Sunday morning. During her address in the assembly on environmental issues, Banerjee said, "War has broken out in many parts of the world. Such things cause air and water pollution. We have to take steps to stop this."

She said, "External affairs come under the Indian government. Diplomatically, peacefully, we must take initiative so that war stops." Banerjee clarified, "I am not authorised to speak on external affairs and diplomatic issues. This is my personal view as a concerned citizen of this world." Speaking on the flood situation in Ghatal sub-division in Paschim Medinipur district, she said, despite repeated reminders, the central agency DVC is "not undertaking dredging operations" at its dams in Maithon and Panchet. She accused the DVC of releasing large volumes of water from its dams during the rainy season "without informing" the West Bengal government. "They are releasing water without informing us. They have not conducted dredging operations for many years. Now, DVC has the accumulated capacity to store one lakh cusec of water in its dams. Had they undertaken dredging operations regularly, four lakh cusecs of water could have been stored in their dams and such overflowing in vast parts of south Bengal won't recur," Banerjee said in the assembly. West Bengal Irrigation Minister Manas Bhuniya had on Monday said nearly two lakh people have been affected in the floods at Ghatal sub-division in Paschim Medinipur district and asserted that the government was taking every possible step to help the marooned people. Bhuniya had alleged that the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) aggravated the situation by "failing to regulate the release of water" from its dams in Jharkhand despite requests from the West Bengal irrigation department. The minister had told reporters that he wrote to the chairman of the organisation to exercise caution while discharging additional water in future.