India asked to refute rumors about Farakka Dam

India has reacted to media reports on the opening of 109 gates of the Farakka Barrage located in West Bengal's Murshidabad district. Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement on Monday that fake videos, rumors and scaremongering are being spread about the opening of Farakka Barrage gates to create misunderstandings.

Regarding the opening of Farakka Barrage gates, this spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs of India said, We have seen media reports about the opening of Farakka Barrage gates. When the gate is opened, 11 lakh cusecs of water will flow downstream in Ganga/Padma in normal course.

This water flow is a natural phenomenon due to increased flow due to heavy rainfall upstream of the catchment areas of the Ganga river basin. “It should be understood that Farakka is only a barrage and not a dam,” he said in the statement. “Whenever the water level reaches the level of the barrage, whatever amount of water flows out,” he said.

“It is just a gated structure on the Ganga/Padma river; Which is made in such a way that 40 thousand cusecs of water can be diverted from the main river and taken to the Farakka Canal. At the same time, the balance of water flow towards Bangladesh is also correct.

This spokesperson of the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that according to the protocol regarding the opening of the gates of Farakka Barrage, information is shared regularly and timely with the officials of the Joint River Commission in Bangladesh. This time also it has been done about opening the gate.

Randhir Jaiswal said, “We see fake videos, rumors and scaremongering spreading to create misunderstandings. But such rumors should be strongly countered with proper information.”

Earlier, on Monday afternoon, Indian local media News18 reported that all 109 gates of the Farakka Barrage had been opened. It said that all the gates of Farakka barrage have been opened due to heavy rains in Bihar and Jharkhand states of the country and increased water pressure. As a result, there are fears that floods may occur in large areas of Bangladesh, including Murshidabad in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Quoting Farakka Barrage project sources, News18 reported that due to heavy rains in Bihar and Jharkhand, the water level of Farakka Barrage project has increased. That is why all the gates of the barrage have been opened to handle the water pressure. As a result, 11 lakh cusecs of water will enter Bangladesh in a day.

According to the report, the amount of water coming into the project has been released. In the Farakka barrage area, water is flowing 77.34 meters above the tidal limit. The authorities have been forced to leave as the water pressure increases. Officials said there is a risk of damage to the Farakka barrage if the water is not released.

This country's media said that the daily water release is increasing as the water from the Farakka Barrage project exceeds the limit. Meanwhile, as a result of this water release, water from the Ganga is entering different areas of West Bengal. There is a threat of flood in Murshidabad district. Due to heavy rainfall in upper basin of Ganga including Bihar, Jharkhand, water in Ganga is rising suddenly.

Due to the opening of the gate of Farakka barrage, there is a fear of flooding in the neighboring districts of Bangladesh including Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Pabna, Sirajganj, Kushtia, Rajbari and Manikganj.

Farakka Barrage authorities say that there is water pressure in Farakka Dam due to floods in two neighboring states – Bihar, Jharkhand. But there is some relief as no water has yet come down from the mountains of Nepal. The authorities were forced to open the gate on Saturday as water flowed 77.34 meters above the limit in the Farakka barrage area. The quantity of water in the feeder canal has also been increased.

RAR/Sa.A