State accelerates ‘implementation of Ghatal Master Plan’; DPR prepared

Kolkata: State government has accelerated the process of implementing the Ghatal Master Plan and aims to complete the project within two years.

The Mamata Banerjee government will bear a cost over Rs 1,500 crore for carrying out the project. The DPR for the project has been prepared.

The Ghatal Master Plan — a mega-flood management programme will bring relief to people in low-lying areas around Ghatal in West and East Midnapore. Banerjee had earlier announced that the state government would implement the Ghatal Master Plan with its resources as the Centre did not respond to the longstanding demand. Chief Minister Banerjee while visiting the flood-affected areas of Ghatal recently gave assurances that the project would be implemented fast. She has given utmost importance to the project. To accelerate the process a meeting was held at Nabanna in this regard, following the instruction of the Chief Minister. State Irrigation minister Manas Bhunia held the meeting with the Chief Secretary Manoj Pant. Ghatal MP Dev also attended the meeting to discuss several issues relating to the project. Dev has already said that he would not go to campaign in Ghatal if the project works do not get started within 2026. Chief Minister Banerjee earlier in the Assembly said that the project will be completed within 2-3 years. Banerjee has also accused the Centre of shifting the Ghatal Master plan office from Bengal to Bihar.

“Ghatal Master Plan project has been hanging in the balance for a long time. There should be another Master plan for Sunderbans. The water level is going up near Kapil Muni Ashram in Gangasagar.

The situation in front of the temple is not so good,” Banerjee had said earlier. After the foundation stone for the project was laid in 1982, the erstwhile Left Front government initiated the project and it prepared a detailed project report and submitted it to the central government in 2009. The Union ministry of Jal Shakti had approved the Rs 1,207 crore plan in 2012, but Centre did not sanction any funds.

Chief minister Banerjee had written a series of letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to take initiatives to clear the proposal in the past few years, but nothing happened.