CM visits Aila-affected areas, Marichjhapi, Pakhiralaya

Gosaba | Wednesday, Feb 1 2012 ISTCM visits Aila-affected areas, Marichjhapi, Pakhiralaya


Gosaba | Wednesday, Feb A day after announcing a slew of developmental schemes for the Sunderbans, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today visited the Aila-affected areas here. The chief minister, on her second day in the Sunderbans, also visited Marichjhapi and Pakhiralaya on her way to Sonakhali on a launch. Ms Banerjee also interacted with a number of people and assured them an all round development for the Sunderbans. Surprising the senior government officials and others accompanying her, she also sat for some time at the driver's seat of the launch. Incidentally, the chief minister, besides chairing an administrative meeting here, had announced yesterday a series of developmental plans for the Aila-affected people in the Sunderbans. Ms Banerjee had promised that houses would be built for the victims who would also be given rice at Rs two per kg for six months. She also had said a mega tourism project was on the card here exploiting the 'natural potentiality' with a special focus on wildlife. She had said river embankments in the Sunderbans would be repaired on priority basis and the place would also be provided with electricity soon. Referring to the other developmental projects, Ms Banerjee said solar power projects were being considered for the Sunderbans where 450 new tubewells would be installed, adding the transport system would also get a revamp. ''Sunderbans should be sunder (beautiful) in all the senses and we will leave no stone unturned in this regard,'' the chief minister had maintained. Chief Secretary Samar Ghosh, Home Secretary G D Gautama and other senior government officials were accompayning the chief minister. Ms Banerjee is scheduled to return to Kolkata tonight. The Sunderbans has been crawling back to normalcy since it was devastated by cyclone Aila on May 25, 2009. More than 5000 people were displaced from the place because of the cyclone that had also left the wildlife rattled. Thousands were affected by a deadly diarrhoea outbreak that followed the cyclone. UNI ADG LR SS1838 NNNN
-- (UNI) -- 01ca21.xml1 2012 IST