B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Sutlej washes away crop on 40 acre
Fazilka, June 20
Freshly transplanted paddy and moong in about 40 acres of land in the flood-prone border village Mohar Jamsher, surrounded on three sides by Pakistan, was washed away as an overflowing river Sutlej inundated the agricultural fields.

F’pur takes preventive measures against floods
Ferozepur, June 20
The district administration is making preparations to ensure that flood protection measures are in place. Last year, the floods had wreaked havoc with standing crops on over 27,000 acres getting damaged. The damage was assessed at Rs 18 crore in this border district.

Paddy fields prone to floods: Experts
Faridkot, June 20
Two weeks back, as the intense summer heat showed no signs of abating and paddy seedlings awaited transplantation, farmers were worried about the availability of adequate water for planting the crop.

Father-son duo killed in road mishap
Muktsar, June 20
A father-son duo was killed in a road mishap today. Jarnail Singh (63) and Jasvir Singh (23), who were natives of Hanumangarh district in Rajasthan, were riding a bike. The bike collided with a car near Channu village.

Elderly person found murdered
Faridkot, June 20
A 75-year-old man was killed in his house by some unidentified persons on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday in Hariewala village of Faridkot. Nachhatar Singh was living with his nephew and his body was found lying in a pool of blood in his room this morning.

Sutlej washes away crop on 40 acre
Praful Chander Nagpal

Fazilka, June 20
Freshly transplanted paddy and moong in about 40 acres of land in the flood-prone border village Mohar Jamsher, surrounded on three sides by Pakistan, was washed away as an overflowing river Sutlej inundated the agricultural fields.

The water level has been continuously increasing in the Sutlej river during the last three days. According to the villagers, the water level in the main stream near village Mohar Jamsher, that had increased by 8-10 feet three days back, increased to nearly 15 feet today, posing a threat of flash floods.

"The recently sown paddy and moong has virtually been washed away. If the inflow of water continues to increase, the villagers may face a tough time," said Kulwant Singh, the sarpanch of the village.

"Only 12,000 cusecs of water has been released from Hussainiwala head works. Pakistan has shut the shutters at Sulemanki head works due to the excess of water resulting in back pressure of water into the Indian territory," said executive engineer Gian Chand Singla.

The village has a different topography. It is surrounded by Pakistan on three sides and on the fourth side flows the river Sutlej. The village is also surrounded by barbed wire fencing from all sides. The villagers have to take permission from the BSF while entering.

"No alarming signals have been received from any part. The situation is under control," said DIG, BSF, AK Sharma.

After persistent demand from the 800 odd residents, the state and central governments decided to lay a concrete bridge connecting the village with the main land.

When this correspondent visited the village after taking permission from the BSF authorities, it was noticed that the construction of bridge was in full swing.

Sources said 80 per cent work has been completed and the deadline for the completion of the work has been fixed for June 30. "If the water level further increases, the construction work could be hampered," said the masons working there.

Another threat in case of an increase in the flow of water is that the authorities shall have to remove the pontoon bridge laid on the Sutlej, the only means to connect the villagers with the mainland. The pontoon bridge is removed after June 30 every year before the monsoon season but in case of flash floods, it can be removed even earlier.

F’pur takes preventive measures against floods

Ferozepur, June 20
The district administration is making preparations to ensure that flood protection measures are in place. Last year, the floods had wreaked havoc with standing crops on over 27,000 acres getting damaged. The damage was assessed at Rs 18 crore in this border district.

Deputy Commissioner Manjit Singh Narang, who took stock of the flood prevention measures today, said work on cleaning and strengthening several drains in Talwandi Bhai, Daulatpura, Guruharsahai, Makhu, Zira and Mohkan Bhatti was in progress. Of these, the work on resectioning of Makhu Mauzgarh link drain and Bhuttiwala drain is yet to start. However, the rest of the work is likely to be completed by the end of the month, said the officials of the drainage department.

Besides, construction of stone crated revetment between the studs near the border outpost Mohhamadiwala was also on the verge of completion, the DC said. — OC

Paddy fields prone to floods: Experts
Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service

Faridkot, June 20
Two weeks back, as the intense summer heat showed no signs of abating and paddy seedlings awaited transplantation, farmers were worried about the availability of adequate water for planting the crop. Last week, as the pre-monsoon showers lashed the region for over three days, the farmers' thoughts turned diametrically opposite with most of them worried about a possible flood-like situation prevailing in the area.

“Punjab should face up to the water crisis with courage and steady application of water harvesting. Otherwise, the state will face problems which won’t go away," said Anupam Mishra, a founding member of the Gandhi Peace Foundation in Delhi. Mishra travels across the water-challenged parts of the country studying methods of rainwater harvesting and learning from the people behind them.

"Due to the growing of paddy in the irrigated areas during the dry season for the last 30 years, the water level has been continuously declining in Punjab," said Umendra Dutt, executive director, Kheti Virasat Mission, a voluntary organization, that works in the field of natural farming.

Besides being a water guzzling crop, paddy stops the replenishment of groundwater with rainwater, said Umendra Dutt. There is no recharging of underground water resources at the time of rain because the paddy growers create puddle in their fields to prepare the land for the transplantation of seedlings. Creating puddles means repeated harrowing of the highly irrigated soil and it results in a muddy layer that is 15-20 cm thick. It creates a so-called plow layer of some 5 cm-8 cm thickness just below the muddy layer. This layer is very compact and prevents water from percolating downward, said Dutt.

"This is the reason why a flood-like situation is more prevalent in areas where the farmers grow paddy. In areas where cotton is the main crop, the high percolation of the rainwater not only helps in replenishing the groundwater but also prevents a flood-like situation," said a senior official at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), an independent body for agricultural research and extension in Faridkot.

It is because of this that the KVK recommends that farmers should use a deep plough every three years to break the deep layer and make direct seeding of paddy to ensure the seepage of water, said the KVK official.

"Because of their love for the paddy crop, farmers in south-western Punjab, where most of the soil is sandy and cotton is the traditional crop, farmers lift the sandy soil by putting clay on it. As clay has the capacity to hold more water than the sandy soil, it also adds to the problem of floods due to poor seepage and low recharging of groundwater in the region," said Umendra Dutt.

Father-son duo killed in road mishap

Muktsar, June 20
A father-son duo was killed in a road mishap today. Jarnail Singh (63) and Jasvir Singh (23), who were natives of Hanumangarh district in Rajasthan, were riding a bike. The bike collided with a car near Channu village.

The police said Jarnail died on the spot, while his son Jasvir had sustained severe injuries. He was rushed to a hospital but could not survive his injuries.

A case has been registered against the car driver at Lambi police station. — TNS

Elderly person found murdered

Faridkot, June 20
A 75-year-old man was killed in his house by some unidentified persons on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday in Hariewala village of Faridkot. Nachhatar Singh was living with his nephew and his body was found lying in a pool of blood in his room this morning.

The family members ruled out family dispute as the reason behind the murder. A case under Section 302 of the IPC has been registered against unknown miscreants. — TNS