Beas tragedy: Who is to blame for students' death?

Beas River TragedyWas a criminally casual approach to releasing water from the Larji hydropower project by the authorities responsible for 24 engineering students and a tour guide from Hyderabad being swept away in the Beas river? Many are now pointing an accusing finger at the project officials for releasing 250 cumecs of water without proper warning on Sunday. And that too in peak tourist season when many people from across the country flood the riverbanks of Himachal Pradesh.

The dam authorities say they were well within their rights to release the water in hurry and that they had sounded the mandatory hooters in time. Angry local, however, challenge this version and claim that the hooter was sounded after the accident as a face-saver. The rulebook says dam authorities must inform the state and local administration so that people in downstream could be alerted about the rise in water levels. But Mandi deputy commissioner Devesh Kumar said, "I did not receive a phone call from the authorities and I have no idea if they sent a written communique."

Agitated residents, who had blocked the national highway on Sunday evening, said local residents can understand what it means when hooter is blown, but how tourists would know that water level is going to increase without any reason. Those who have no idea that there is a reservoir behind those hills feel that going close to water is quite safe when it is not even raining.