Vadodara: A team of four officers from the Inter-Ministerial Central Team of the Union Government arrived in Vadodara on Thursday to assess the flood damage in the area. After a meeting at the Collector’s office, they inspected the Ajwa Reservoir, where they reportedly prima-facie suggested strengthening and modernizing the embankments of the reservoir and planning for diverting the excess water entering it.

During the meeting at the Collector’s office, Collector Bijal Shah and Municipal Commissioner Dilip Rana provided details about Vadodara’s geographical location, the catchment area of Ajwa Lake, Dev Dam, and Pratappura Lake, as well as rainfall in the upper reaches and the water storage capacity of Ajwa Lake. The presentation also highlighted the conditions under which more water flows into the Vishwamitri River and the effects of the Dhadhar River and Ajwa Sarovar on it.

The Collector detailed the rescue operations carried out by the Fire Brigade, NDRF, and Army. Led by Rajendra Ratnoo, Executive Director of the National Institute of Disaster Management, the Inter-Ministerial Central Team included Chinmoy Gotmare from the Finance Department, Yoki Vijay from the Jal Shakti Ministry, and AV Suresh Babu from the National Remote Sensing Center.

The team members inspected cave-ins on the roads in the city and gathered information about the soil and sewage system. They also visited areas such as Dandiya Bazar, Kalaghoda Bridge, and VUDA Circle along the Vishwamitri River, where they verified the high flood levels and geographical conditions. The administration came into action just after the inspection of cave-ins by the team. City BJP President Dr. Vijay Shah met the team outside his house while they were inspecting potholes. He requested the Central team officials to assist traders whose homes had been inundated by water. DeshGujarat