<b>Letters:</b> Pass draft Bill

The country can ill-afford devastation due to dam-related mishaps

With reference to “Dams in troubled waters” (March 7), in 2010, the then Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources, Pawan Bansal, had introduced the Dam Safety Bill that sought to provide for surveillance, inspection and operation of all dams of certain parameters to ensure their safe functioning. A National Committee on Dam Safety was envisaged whose functions included (a) monitoring the functioning of state or non-state dam safety organisations (b) evaluating dam safety procedures in various states and suggesting ways to improve safety consistent with international practices and Indian conditions (c) evolving a comprehensive dam safety management approach, and