Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said senior Bengal ministers and Trinamul Congress MPs would seek an appointment with Union irrigation minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to demand funds for the implementation of the Ghatal master plan.

The statement shows the Bengal chief minister holds the Narendra Modi government’s inaction on implementing the Ghatal Master Plan, drawn up eight years ago to control floods, responsible for the current inundation of large parts of West Midnapore and East Midnapore and Hooghly.

On the Day Two of her first district tour since coming to power for the third time in a row, Mamata conducted an aerial survey of flood-affected areas in West Midnapore and then landed at Ghatal.

“You all know that Ghatal is located in a lowland area. We have repeatedly appealed (to the central government) to implement the Ghatal Master Plan. Despite it being a central government scheme, the government (in Delhi) is not sanctioning the sum…..I would like to tell Soumen Mahapatra (state irrigation minister), Manas Bhuniya (state water resources minister) and all others to take a time from central irrigation minister and go to Delhi to place the demand for the funds,” Mamata said after visiting relief camps in Ghatal. She distributed relief materials to flood-affected people.

“I think our Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members should also be taken in the team to visit Delhi. Otherwise, Ghatal can’t be saved (if the master plan is not implemented).”

The chief minister spent around half an hour in near-knee deep water at Ghatal.

The Telegraph had reported last week that refusal of the Centre to grant promised funds was one of the main reasons for flooding in East Midnapore and West Midnapore and Hooghly.

“Today I was coming here from Jhargram and conducting an aerial survey. I had made a video of a 7km stretch of flood-affected areas in which I saw everything, including farmland and houses totally marooned. I will talk about the matter administratively and make a report on it soon. The situation of Ghatal is horrible,” said the chief minister after directing the local administration to open more camps at Ghatal for the flood-affected people.

The Ghatal master plan is a cluster of projects that include the dredging and widening of riverbeds, strengthening of embankments, widening of confluences of at least 10 large rivers such as the Kansabati, Rupnarayan, Shilabati and at least 40 channels and sub-channels passing through East Midnapore and West Midnapore.

In 2012, the state government sent Delhi a detailed project report of the plan estimated at around Rs 1,200 crore, which received administrative and financial approval by the Modi government in 2015. The Centre had approved to pitch in with 75 per cent of the project cost, but later reduced its share to 50 per cent. No money was sent. The state government dredged a large part of the Durbachati, Khiraibaksi and New Koshi rivers with its own funds.

Sources said, after Mamata’s visit, the ministers had started an initiative to get an appointment with the central ministry of irrigation immediately.

“We have already started communication with our leaders in Delhi to get the appointment. According to the direction of our chief minister, all ministers, MLAs and MPs would accompany the team to Delhi. We would provide all relevant documents from the first planning of the project along with the approvals

of the central government to the present ministry. We would also attach the video that our chief minister shot from her chopper,” said Manas Ranjan Bhuniya, Trinamul’s Sabang MLA and current water resources investigation and development minister.

“Chief minister had earlier written to the Centre at least 10 times but because of sheer negligence for Bengal, the Modi government did not sanction the fund,” added Bhuniya.

Mamata said her government had already provided huge funds to finish earlier Keleghai-Kapaleshwari master plan and granted around Rs 2,800 crore to de-silt and execute several other projects in lower Damodar basin to save vast areas of Howrah and Hooghly from inundation.

“We (the state government) had spent Rs 700 crore from our fund to complete the Keleghai-Kapaleshwari project. We have constructed several check dams by using Rs 500 crore. We have also provided Rs 2,800 crore in Damodar lower basin project which needs to be completed soon,” said Mamata.