Bengal Flood
Bengal flood: Death toll rises to 36, several still missing; Mamata blames DVC
Siliguri/Kolkata/IBNS: The death toll in the flood and landslide caused by heavy rains last weekend in Darjeeling hills and other areas of the northern part of West Bengal touched 36 on Tuesday, media reports said.
Five of the victims are from Nepal.
The rescue operation is still on. Several tourists are stuck in various parts of north Bengal which was flooded by the torrential rain.
Several bodies are still missing.
Thirteen bodies were recovered only from Mirik, which is known for its serene natural beauty, tea gardens, and peaceful lakeside setting — making it a popular getaway in the Darjeeling hills.
Road connectivity in key routes has been disrupted in the region.
The hill station usually remains very busy in this part of the year with tourists pouring during the festival season.
In 24 hours from 8 am on Saturday, Darjeeling received 261 mm of rain, Cooch Behar 192 mm, Jalpaiguri 172 mm, The Times of India reported.
Gajoldoba in another North Bengal district Jalpaiguri received massive 300 mm of rain.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who flew to north Bengal on Monday, pinned the blame on Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and the central government over the flood.
Mamata relaunched the same allegations, which she had passed when Kolkata was flooded by rain last month ahead of Durga Puja.
"The fact of the matter is there is a limit to how much we can manage water. West Bengal is the victim of water released by Bihar, Uttar Pradesh through Farakka Barrage. How will our water get drained? DVC releases water wilfully to save Jharkhand. But why are they not doing desiltation?
"What's the use of dams if they don't have the capacity to store water? It would have been better for us if there was no dam because that would have facilitated the natural waterflow. West Bengal is facing the downside of it," she said.
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