Task force soon on floods

The government will soon set up a task force to look into the problems of floods and suggest a permanent solution in the wake of unprecedented floods in the east and the north-eastern parts of the country.

"Though the floods in these areas were usual phenomena, but this year the floods were more severe and had affected the life of people and cattle considerably", Water Resources Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said inaugurating a two-day conference of chief secretaries to discuss the water-related issues here today.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had recently made an aerial survey of the flood affected areas of Assam and Bihar. The minister said water experts should come out with recommendations that would help in the formulation of appropriate action plans, adding that there was a need for a comprehensive approach on river erosion and flood management programmes.

While one part of the country was facing the fury of floods, in many other parts, the rainfall had been reported to be below normal and danger of drought was looming large, he said, emphasising that appropriate measures were needed to plan future utilisation of water resources.