Imphal: Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Keisham Meghachandra has described the recent floods in southern Manipur as “man-made” and demanded action against officials of the Water Resources Department (WRD).
Meghachandra alleged that on September 14, all four gates of the Maphou/Thoubal Dam were opened simultaneously by four feet each due to upstream flooding, resulting in extensive damage to homes, agricultural lands, and fish farms in the Thoubal districts.
He accused senior WRD engineers of failing in their responsibilities and called for appropriate compensation for the affected families.
In response, the WRD issued a statement on Saturday, asserting that the flooding was primarily caused by heavy rainfall in the catchment area and inflows from nine major tributaries joining the Thoubal River downstream of the dam.
The department emphasized that the floods were driven by extraordinary natural inflows rather than dam operations.
The WRD further stated that the Thoubal Dam reservoir absorbed and stored a significant portion of the floodwater, reducing the peak discharge downstream. Officials noted that without the dam, unchecked inflows would have caused even more severe flooding in the valley.
Key downstream stakeholders, including sand mining groups and local residents, were informed through field staff using mobile communications, the WRD added.
The department is also preparing a comprehensive Emergency Action Plan (EAP) under the Dam Safety Act, 2021, to strengthen flood response and communication during extreme events.
The WRD stressed that the spillway gates were opened gradually and in a controlled manner for dam safety and flood moderation, in response to the highest rainfall recorded in the past five years. It dismissed claims of sudden or unannounced water releases as factually incorrect.
The flash floods wreaked havoc across southern valley districts of Manipur from September 14 to 18, leaving widespread destruction in their wake.