Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- At the ninth plenary meeting of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis, the issue of sending a parliamentary request to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the state of implementation of legislation on ensuring the safety of settlements and economic facilities located in the mountainous and foothill territories of the country was discussed.

Analysis of the dialogue with the population, citizens’ appeals, field studies, the state of implementation of legislation in this area and law enforcement practice shows that there are still a number of systemic problems and shortcomings.

Due to the lack of full efficient and effective control over the resettlement of citizens living in hydrometeorological and geologically hazardous territories of the country, it was revealed that despite the fact that 117 out of 602 farms in hydrometeorological and geologically dangerous territories and 624 out of 2,476 citizens living in these farms, need relocation to safe areas for permanent residence, only in the first ten months of 2020, only 59 people from 9 households were relocated to safe areas for permanent residence. The rest of the households were relocated to safer places for temporary residence. This means that temporarily resettled citizens will return to the danger zone and continue to live there.

In 2019, out of 569 residents of 113 households that were subject to resettlement for permanent residence, only 132 citizens from 34 households were resettled to safe areas.

In addition, despite the fact that state and economic management bodies, local government bodies must coordinate with the State Service for Monitoring Hazardous Geological Processes projects of industrial and economic construction in areas where hazardous geological processes may intensify, there are hundreds of cases of land acquisition. for entrepreneurial activity, housing construction without the conclusions of the State Service for Monitoring Hazardous Geological Processes.

It has now been established that none of the authorized bodies has data on the number of industrial and economic facilities built in mountainous and foothill areas without the conclusions of the State Service for Monitoring Hazardous Geological Processes.

There are facts when a formal approach is observed and the representations and instructions made by the employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the State Service of the Republic of Uzbekistan for monitoring hazardous geological processes to the heads of the responsible authorities are not fully implemented in order to protect against floods, mudflows, landslides of settlements and economic objects located in the hydrometeorological and geologically dangerous territories of the country.

In particular, only 152 out of 251 submissions introduced in 2019 by employees of the Ministry and Emergency Situations Directorates to the heads of relevant departments, that is, 60%, and during 10 months of 2020, only 206 out of 307 submissions, that is, 67% were taken into account.

6 of 41 prescriptions introduced in 2020 by employees of the State Service for Monitoring Hazardous Geological Processes have not been fulfilled, and 18 are partially fulfilled.

Such shortcomings require the adoption of effective measures in relation to responsible employees who did not ensure the fulfillment of the submissions of the employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the State Service for Monitoring Hazardous Geological Processes.

In addition, although the territorial flood control commissions determined to form territorial targeted programs, the relevant khokimiyats and the Ministry of Finance do not allocate sufficient funds to ensure the fulfillment of the tasks set in the targeted programs, that is, for engineering protection works.

Due to the untimely implementation of engineering and protective measures, strengthening the banks, expanding the areas where the restoration of dams is required, the danger of floods and mudflows increases, which is the reason for justified claims of residents, as well as a sharp increase in costs in design estimates.

To strengthen the banks of the Baysun-Okkapchiga River in order to protect the population of the Oktam makhalla of the Ketmon makhalla assembly of citizens of Kumkurgan district of Surkhandarya region, the necessary funds in the amount of 1 billion soums were not allocated in 2019, 2 billion soums were not allocated for these purposes in 2020, and now it is planned to allocate 3 billion soums to carry out these works in 2021, which is included in the program.

The arbitrary illegal extraction of sand and gravel from rivers and streams led to the fact that the bottom of the river and stream deepened, water flows accelerated. The change in the river bottom led to the erosion of the banks, the collapse of the dam, the destruction of the pillars of the bridge, which endangers the dwelling houses of the population living near the river bank, and economic objects, automobile bridges prematurely fall into disrepair.

As a result of illegal extraction of sand and gravel in river beds flowing through the territory of Andijan, Namangan, Samarkand, Jizzakh, Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya, Tashkent and Syrdarya regions, about 300 houses of the population are under threat. In addition, there are problems with the repair and rehabilitation of internal bridges on local roads affected by floods and mudflows.

In Andijan, Samarkand, Surkhandarya, Jizzakh, Kashkadarya and Tashkent regions, bridge supports on 26 trunk roads are also in critical condition.

In addition, there are problems with the repair and rehabilitation of internal bridges on local roads, which have been damaged by floods and mudflows.

In 2019-2020, during the rainy season in the country due to mudflows, damage was caused in 31 places of internal roads of local importance and 90 internal road bridges, which were not repaired due to insufficient funds in the local budget.

In addition, as a result of mining operations for the extraction of nonmetallic minerals near the riverbeds and canals through which open sections of the main gas pipelines belonging to Uztransgaz pass, the change in the riverbeds causes the banks of the main gas pipelines to erode. These circumstances, in turn, lead to significant expenditures of funds for the restoration of river banks and canals through which open sections of gas pipelines pass, and construction work.

In this regard, a resolution of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis was adopted on sending to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan a parliamentary inquiry on the state of implementation of legislation on ensuring the safety of settlements and economic objects located in mountainous and foothill areas of the country, where there is a danger of floods, mud flows, landslides.