BHUBANESWAR: As many flood-affected areas are still under water and road communication has not been restored, it will become difficult for Government departments to meet the September 20 deadline for submitting flood damage reports (FDRs). The block and district-level officials of the affected districts are busy in rescue and relief operations. They have hardly any time to assess the damage, said a senior officer on condition of anonymity. Although water level has receded considerably, there are certain pockets in Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur and Puri districts which are still not accessible due to breaches on roads. Even temporary restoration of damaged roads will not be possible in the next one week, the officer said. A proper assessment of damage, caused to public and private properties, could be possible only when communication to all the affected areas is restored and district officials are through with relief operation.‘ARM-CHAIR’ ASSESSMENTS: A senior BJD leader of a coastal district, who did not want to be named, said a BDO has estimated the damage in four panchayats of Jajpur district at ` 6 crore while the actual damage is much less. Another BDO of the same district has reportedly assessed the damage in another four panchayats at ` 4 crore without visiting the affected areas, said another ruling party MLA. Even though the Government instructed the line departments to prepare the FDR in a fair and transparent manner under the supervision of senior officers not below the rank of joint secretary, none of the departments has taken it seriously. The Government had instructed the district collectors to ensure that a list of damaged properties is displayed in each flood-affected village for public view. However, this has not been translated into action, admit many leaders of the ruling party. After the 2008 flood, the Government decided to develop all the damaged panchayat roads into cement concrete (CC) roads. The Panchayati Raj Department incurred an expenditure of nearly ` 300 crore on this account. Now it is to be seen how many of the CC roads, developed last year, have been damaged by the current floods. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had asked for FDRs from the districts by September 25. However, the Chief Secretary advanced the date to September 20. The Government has to submit utilisation certificates for repair and restoration works within 45 days of occurrence of the flood.
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