Word: floodings
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...Despite the dire situation, South Asia's leaders seem more focused on doling out blame than tackling the problem. Indian politicians like to accuse Nepal of releasing too much water. Nepal says India clogs drainage with its badly managed flood-control system, and Bangladesh's leaders blame both countries for inundating them. All three nations see more antiflood infrastructure as the solution. Bihar's water resources minister Jagdanand Singh backs an extraordinary project popular across the political spectrum to build thousands of kilometers of canals that would link every river in the country. In theory, the network would allow engineers...
...planning." What management there is, says Dasgupta, ignores traditional methods of water storage in dry areas-such as the now disused network of channels and tanks built by the Mughals back in the 16th century to irrigate much of central India-and focuses instead on dams and embankments for flood prevention. Yet because India's flood-control infrastructure is poorly maintained, dams and embankments often block rather than facilitate drainage, says Dasgupta, while their huge construction costs might attract corruption. Says Pushpender Kumar Singh, regional manager for flood-relief group Action Aid: "[Floods] used...
...scorching summer roll in off the Bay of Bengal, prick themselves on the Himalayas and disgorge the monsoon. This year, the rains have been unusually concentrated. In Nepal, a nation that has felled 60% of its forests in just 40 years, the waters gushed from the mountains in flash floods. By the end of last week, 255 km of roads, 76 bridges, 61 schools and 220 people had been swept away. The water then surged into the northeastern Indian states of Bihar and Assam. Poorly maintained embankments burst, and irrigation channels and dams that had been allowed to choke with...
...dichotomy of farmers with too much and too little water just hours apart from one another produced a bizarre schizophrenia in India's government last week. As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh toured the floods, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram was asking businessmen to pray for rain and warning that drought might cut economic growth to below 5%. And when Singh arrived in Bihar, the state asked in the same breath for $2.4 billion for flood alleviation and $890 million for drought. "It's crazy," says Bihar air-relief coordinator Gautam Goswami. "Absolutely crazy...
...PAVEL RAHMAN/AP Children swim through flood waters in the Gaibandha district...