States » EastPosted at: Oct 4 2026 9:59PM


Seven Bihar engineers suspended for flood response lapses, departmental action against chief engineer

Patna, Oct 4 (UNI) The Bihar Water Resources Department has suspended seven engineers with immediate effect and ordered departmental proceedings against eight officials, including a chief engineer, for alleged negligence in handling the unprecedented flood in the Gandak river and subsequent relief and rescue operations.
Official sources said here on Sunday that disciplinary action was initiated against the officials over alleged lapses in responding to the emergency, delays in taking prompt action, poor management of resources and inadequate coordination with local residents and public representatives.
The suspended officials include Chhapra Executive Engineer Santosh Kumar Prabhakar, Gopalganj Executive Engineer Mohammad Sajid Iqbal, Chhapra Assistant Engineers Sunil Kumar and Vinod Kumar, Gopalganj Assistant Engineer Mohammad Javed Ansari, and Chhapra Junior Engineer Chandrashekhar Kumar and Gopalganj Junior Engineer Vikas Kumar.
Departmental proceedings have also been ordered against all seven suspended engineers.
In addition, departmental action will be initiated against Muzaffarpur Chief Engineer Kumar Manoj Gupta over alleged laxity and negligence in responding to the damage to the Champaran embankment and the subsequent emergency situation, the sources informed.
Sources said that heavy rainfall in Nepal and Uttar Pradesh led to an unprecedented discharge in the Gandak river. The river level at Devghat in Nepal crossed its previous record high, while new record water levels were also recorded at Bagaha, Dumariaghat, Rewaghat and Lalganj in Bihar. The exceptional flow resulted in damage to embankments at several locations.
Senior departmental officials and technical experts had inspected the damaged embankments and assessed the situation, following which directions were issued for immediate action under the emergency response plan. However, during review it was later found that some local engineers were allegedly lax in implementing the action plan.
According to the departmental report, some engineers left the breach sites instead of responding immediately to the emergency. The expected efforts to secure the eroded sections using the manpower and materials available at the sites were not made, while shortcomings were also found in mobilising local resources.
Flood-fighting materials were subsequently dispatched from warehouses at the department''s Patna headquarters and from other districts, while additional engineers were deployed to the affected areas. Despite these measures, lapses were found in implementing the emergency action plan on the ground and in managing materials and resources.
The department also noted a lack of necessary coordination with local residents and public representatives, which led to strong public resentment against the functioning of some engineers.
Meanwhile, the Gandak river level has been falling rapidly. On Sunday, the water level at Rewaghat in Saran had fallen 177 cm from its peak and was 50 cm below the danger mark, returning to the normal range.
At Lalganj in Vaishali, the water level had declined by 130 cm from its new peak but remained 52 cm above the danger mark. The department said the level was expected to fall below the danger mark within the next 24 hours.
The department said there was currently no pressure on the embankments and problems related to seepage and piping had also subsided. Adequate materials were being stored at the breach sites, while work to secure eroded sections and complete tagging was continuing.
The Water Resources Department said any laxity or negligence in responding to disaster-like emergency situations would be considered unacceptable and strict action would be ensured in such cases.
UNI RS BM
Tags: #Seven Bihar engineers suspended for flood response lapses# departmental action against chief engineer
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