KUANTAN, May 14 — Pahang Regent Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah today instructed the relevant authorities to expedite works to clean and deepen the rivers and drainage in the state that have become shallow due to sedimentation from previous floods.

He said the state and federal governments, especially the Ministry of Environment and Water (KASA) should work together in implementing the works, which must be done before the Northeast Monsoon season begins at the end of this year.

According to Tengku Hassanal, works also need to be expedited in Janda Baik, Bentong, where the shallowing river was the leading cause of flash floods involving five villages in the area on Wednesday (May 11), which included Kampung Sum-Sum, Kampung Cheringin and Kampung Chemperoh.

"I have also instructed that the implementation of the Sungai Bentong Flood Mitigation Plan project and the Environmentally Friendly Drainage Master Plan (PISMA) in Bentong be expedited, including the construction of a Telemetry Station and Flood Warning Station in the upstream area of Janda Baik,” he said in a media statement here. today.

The recent flash floods in Janda Baik had been due to unusually heavy rain measuring 87.5 millimetres (mm) that occurred for three hours beginning at 4 am.

Tengku Hassanal also visited flood victims in Janda Baik yesterday to present donations, besides surveying the site of the incident and listening to briefings on the immediate follow-up action on flood mitigation. — Bernama