Murshidabad welcomes embankment protection scheme

Kolkata, Feb 26 : People of West Bengal's Murshidabad district Friday cheered as Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced schemes in the 2010-11 general budget for protection of embankments along the flood-prone rivers Bhagirathi and Ganga-Padma in parts of the district and its adjoining Nadia.

"We are very happy that Pranab babu (Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee) has addressed the issue of Bhagirathi and Ganga-Padma river erosion in our district. Both the schemes, we heard, have been included in the centrally sponsored flood management programme," said Ananda Ghosh of Lalgola.

He said the people of Murshidabad celebrated Mukherjee's announcement as it would be beneficial to them. Mukherjee was re-elected to the Lok Sabha from Jangipur, a sub-division of Murshidabad district, last year.

According to Mohammed Sujauddin, erosion along the Ganga-Padma has impacted the lives of thousands in the district and many people have been displaced due to tides, especially between Farakka and Jalangi and from Jangipur to Sagardighi.

"The decision to provide budgetary support would give them some relief," he said, adding that Mukherjee has kept the promise he had made to the people during the last Lok Sabha elections.

In 2004, Mukherjee won from Jangipur by over 36,000 votes. He went on to manage key portfolios like defence, external affairs and finance. In 2009, he was re-elected by 128,149 votes. Both times he defeated the Marxist candidates.

Muslim-majority Jangipur, about 260 km north of Kolkata and close to the Indo-Bangladesh border, is located near the historic battlefield of Plassey where the British East India company defeated the then young Nawab of Bengal to get a foothold to rule the country.

A sub-division of Murshidabad district, the predominantly rural and semi-urban constituency suffers from massive Bhagirathi and Ganga-Padma erosion.

"We had great expectations from our finance minister (Mukherjee) and he has lived up to that quite well," said Jadu Ram Ghosh.

Ghosh said the budgetary support would bring smiles to the thousands of displaced people in the district.