Chief Minister Raman Singh on Thursday called a meeting of senior officials of the Revenue and Disaster Management at the Mantralaya immediately after his return from New Delhi.
The meeting was called by the CM to review the preparations being made for the coming monsoon season in the State.
During the meeting, Singh directed the officials to take all precautionary measures required for disaster management and flood control.
He said that the officials must identify all sensitive areas from the aspect of possibility of floods and spread of infectious diseases and take action for making advance arrangements for relief, rescue and medical treatment of the victims.
Singh told the officials that there should be better arrangement ensured also for urban areas besides the rural pockets of the State.
The Chief Minister said that the water levels of Mahanadi, Shivnath, other major rivers and their tributaries should be constantly monitored.
This apart, the water levels of all small and big irrigation dams must also be monitored. Some of the regions in Raigarh Janjgir-Champa and Baloda-Bazar Bhatapara are affected more by floods from Mahanadi river every year, he said.
Singh said that such regions need advance preparation for ensuring safety of the citizens.
The Chief Minister said that since Mahandi river flows through Chhattisgarh and Odisha and there are two dams on the river mainly Gangrel on the Ravishankar reservoir and Hirakund in Odisha where the gates of the dams have to be opened during heavy rains.
During heavy rains there is a control mechanism in Odisha for monitoring the water level of Mahanadi river. Sometimes, the back water of the Hirakund dam is the cause of floods, Singh said.
Keeping this in mind, the officials of the Water Resources Department must be in regular contact with officials in Odisha and before opening the gates of the dam must provide advance information to the villagers downstream so that safety of life is maintained in both the States, the Chief Minister stated.
It was also directed by the Chief Minister that a
State-level flood control unit be established by the Revenue and Disaster Management Department at office
of the Commissioner, land Records, at the Mantralaya in Naya Raipur.
Singh also directed that apart from the State-level control rooms, similar control rooms must be established simultaneously at district and tehsil headquarters. ‘The police force and the Home Guards must be prepared to meet any eventuality.
later the Chief Minister reviewed the arrangement made for protection from malaria and diahorrea during the monsoon season.
Principal Secretary, Health Department, M K Raut informed in the meeting that sufficient stock of medicines had been made available with the districts hospitals, community and primary health centres and sub health centres besides the health workers in the villages so that patients get immediate medical assistance.
This apart, keeping in view the spread of malaria in the sensitive areas, a total of 11 lakh ‘medicated mosquito nets’ is being arranged for the vulnerable areas which would be available for distribution likely in the last week of July or first week of August, he said.
The Chief Minister stated that the mosquito nets must be distributed in the hostels and ashram shalas besides their distribution to the villagers.
It was informed in the meeting by officials of Revenue and Disaster Management Department that the necessary directives for making
preparations for safety of life during natural calamities had already been issued to all district collectors on May 24 this year.
The meeting today was attended by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Dayal Das Baghel, Housing and Environment Minister Rajesh Munat, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister N Baijendra Kumar, Secretary, Revenue Department, K R Pisda, Secretary to the Chief Minister Subodh Kumar Singh, Director, Urban Administration Rohit Yadav, Director, Health Services Dr Kamalpreet Singh and Inspector General of Police (IGP) R C Patel besides other senior officials.