Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has raised serious questions over the alleged irregularities in the utilization of funds allocated for flood relief and management after the devastating 2014 floods in Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking in Srinagar, Omar Abdullah said that the money received from the Central Government for flood management and rehabilitation was not properly utilized by the previous administration. He questioned where the funds meant to protect Srinagar city and its residents were actually spent.“The funds meant for flood management appear to have been wasted. We will investigate this matter thoroughly — the files will be opened and accountability will be fixed,” the Chief Minister asserted.
He added that the people of Srinagar continue to suffer due to poor planning and mismanagement of crucial resources that were supposed to prevent another disaster of similar magnitude.Earlier also he raised this issue and blamed the previous People’s Democratic Party government for failing to implement flood mitigation measures after the 2014 floods and demanded answers about funds that were allocated but left unused.
Omar said that the sub-committee formed to assess flood preparedness had its findings “suppressed” by the PDP leadership. “Why were the findings suppressed?” he asked, referring to the report of the cabinet sub-committee, which included then members such as Altaf Bukhari.
He questioned the manner in which past flood mitigation work was ignored. “If proper work had been done then, the situation would not be like this today,” he said, adding that the failure to increase the flood channel’s carrying capacity and complete pump sheds had worsened the city’s condition.
Omar also raised concerns about the allocation of funds. “The money had come… where was the use of that money?” he asked, criticising the PDP government for not implementing the recommendations made after the floods.He further said that long-term planning had been neglected. “Now we have to ask for an answer for that,” he said, pointing to the delays and inaction that he said contributed to the current crisis.
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