Locals demand dismantling of Laxmanpur barrage POST REPORT NEPALGUNJ, Aug 6 : Flood-affected people of Banke have asked the Nepali authorities to impress the government of India to dismantle the India-built aflux-bund of the Laxmanpur barrage during a meeting of the Joint Nepal-India Inundation Problem Committee to be held in Lucknow beginning Sunday. Six Village Development Committees located in the eastern part of the district have been inundated after the Indian side built the 12-km long aflux-bund on both sides of the barrage about four years ago. "The entire VDCs have been submerged as a result of the construction of the 12-km long aflux-bund," said Lokendra Bhattarai, senior engineer at the Divisional Office of Water-Induced Disaster Prevention. He said about 4,900 hectares of land has been inundated though there has been low precipitation in Banke. Meanwhile, issuing a press statement today, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu said a marginal embankment on the Indian side of the border has been constructed as part of the Laxamnpur barrage to protect Indian villages from inundation. It also said that the barrage is not yet operational since the canal system associated with the barrage is not yet ready. Hence the question of closing the gates of the barrage and causing inundation on the Nepali side does not arise. While raising concerns over the press reports regarding inundation problems along the Nepal-India border the release said, "Such reports are often based on unverified information and are sometimes completely contrary to facts." "Such reports are misleading and not only create misunderstanding between our two friendly countries but violate the atmosphere in which inundation problems can be successfully tackled through cooperative efforts," added the statement. The statement said there is no dam constructed by India at Laxmanpur, but a barrage on the Rapti River 8-km from the Nepal-India border, well within the Indian territory. The statement also clarifies about the reported construction of a dam in Koilabas. "There is no dam being constructed at Koilabas," the statement said and added that there exists an old reservoir straddling the India-Nepal border at Koilabas, with its gated escape located on the Indian side.