Record-breaking rain and Jharkhand dam releases trigger floods in south Bengal districts, says minister

Record rainfall and the unregulated release of water from neighbouring Jharkhand have combined to trigger acute flooding in two districts of south Bengal, while a flood-like situation has emerged in the north due to water gushing from Sikkim, a senior West Bengal minister told this correspondent on Friday.

“We are encountering a difficult flood situation in south Bengal, especially West Medinipur and Hooghly, due to unprecedented rainfall coupled with uncontrolled water release from the Jharkhand-based DVC [Damodar Valley Corporation] and Galudih dams. On the chief minister’s instructions, I reviewed the situation in Ghatal and adjoining areas of West Medinipur on Friday and will travel to the flood-affected areas of Hooghly on Saturday,” said irrigation minister Manas Bhunia.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on August 1, 2025 warned of very heavy rain exceeding 200 mm in several north Bengal districts between August 2 and 4, which could further worsen the situation.

Highest rainfall in decades

“The southern districts of West Bengal — particularly Purulia, Bankura, Purba Bardhaman and Jhargram — received heavy to very heavy rainfall between 17 and 20 June, totalling 247 to 329 mm. This may be the highest rainfall recorded in the region over a 3-4 day spell in June since the 1978 floods, the worst in recent memory,” Bhunia said.

He added that parts of Paschim Medinipur and Hooghly suffered significant flooding this year due to the record-breaking June rainfall, compounded by uncoordinated water releases from Jharkhand dams, including those controlled by the DVC.

Data accessed by this correspondent shows that rainfall in that four-day period was 139 per cent, 142 per cent, 32 per cent and 26 per cent higher than the long-term June averages for Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram and Purba Bardhaman respectively.

“Overall, June and July this year saw about 22 per cent more rainfall than the long-term average in south Bengal,” noted IMD scientist Habibur Rahman Biswas, adding that a “well-marked low pressure system” over the region on 17 and 18 June coincided with the heavy downpour cited by the minister.

According to IMD records, at least six low-pressure systems and depressions formed over south Bengal during June and July, which, combined with an active monsoon, produced a spell of excess rainfall.

State officials also held a coordination meeting with their counterparts in Bihar and Jharkhand in Patna last week to discuss joint measures to counter long-term erosion along the Ganga.

DVC dams under scrutiny

Bhunia claimed that effective reservoir management at state-controlled dams helped minimise the impact of flooding, but said uncoordinated releases from Jharkhand-based DVC and other dams were the main cause of the disaster.

“No water was released from the Mukutmanipur dam after late June, so no floodwater reached Ghatal and adjoining areas through the Kangsabati. However, significant flood discharge reached Paschim Medinipur and Hooghly through the Darakeshwar, Gandheswari and Silabati rivers,” he said.

An irrigation department report confirmed that floodwaters inundated Chandrakona-I, Chandrakona-II, Daspur-I and Ghatal in Paschim Medinipur via the Silabati, as well as Arambagh and Khanakul-I and II in Hooghly district. Several embankments were breached.

Bhunia said the state had begun implementing the Ghatal flood action plan, using Rs 500 crore already sanctioned out of a total Rs 1,500 crore allocated to address the region’s perennial flooding — a long-standing issue and frequent flashpoint in state politics.

The minister also alleged that “despite repeated requests and timely communication from the state government, the DVC did not manage dam releases properly.”

A senior DVC official said the organisation had released only the volume of water “required under the situation” and through the “due channel of communication”, but declined to directly address the minister’s accusations.

North Bengal floods despite deficit rainfall

In a twist of weather dynamics, north Bengal is facing a flood-like situation despite receiving 28 per cent less monsoon rain than the seasonal average, due to uncontrolled, silt-laden water released from Sikkim, which has been under a torrential spell.

IMD sources confirmed that while Sikkim has faced persistent rain, north Bengal’s rainfall has been deficient over the past two months. “However, from August 2 to 4, there could be significant rainfall in excess of 200 mm,” warned Biswas, which could further aggravate flooding.

As the Teesta’s water level rose, hundreds of houses were inundated and the state irrigation department issued a ‘red alert’ for stretches of the river flowing through Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar districts.

On August 1, Sikkim’s sole Lok Sabha MP, Indra Hang Subba, met Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi to seek urgent action on flood-prone National Highway 10, the Himalayan state’s lifeline, which is now submerged by Teesta water and has been indefinitely closed.

“The Teesta River has undergone major changes since the devastating October 2023 flood, which raised the riverbed with silt, boulders and debris, increasing the flood risk,” said Animesh Bose of local non-profit HNAF. Subir Sarkar, a geography professor at North Bengal University, said rainfall has been scarce so far, raising concerns of a delayed monsoon in the region.

Incidentally, Kolkata received 669 mm of rainfall in July, one of the wettest in the past decade, with 28 rainy days compared to an average of around 18.

IMD Gangtok director Gopinath Raha noted that Sikkim actually received 21 per cent less rain than average during June and July. “The flood in the Teesta seems to be driven more by siltation and the raised riverbed than by rainfall alone,” he said, adding that heavy rainfall expected in both Sikkim and north Bengal in the coming days could make matters worse.

Local experts also blamed the Teesta Low Dam at Kalijhora for contributing to the flooding.