Chief secretary reviews relief work in Punjab’s flood-hit areas as toll reaches 35
Chandigarh, July 17
Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma Monday took stock of the relief and rehabilitation work in flood-hit areas of the state at a high-level meeting with administrative secretaries and all deputy commissioners.
The state, meanwhile, reported three more deaths, taking to 35 the overall toll in the recent spell of heavy downpour that left many districts flooded.
To take stock of the current situation in the flood-affected areas of the state and rehabilitation works, @CsPunjab Anurag Verma held a high level meeting with concerned administrative Secretaries and all Deputy Commissioners. pic.twitter.com/VezmqmG0YK
— Government of Punjab (@PunjabGovtIndia) July 17, 2023
A total of 26,250 people have been evacuated from the waterlogged areas and taken to safer places this includes 14,296 in Patiala, 2,200 in Rupnagar, 250 in Moga and 300 in Ludhiana.
An official spokesperson said 1,422 villages in 18 districts — Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Fatehgarh Sahib, Faridkot, Hoshiarpur, Rupnagar, Kapurthala, Patiala, Moga, Ludhiana, SAS Nagar, Jalandhar, Sangrur, SBS Nagar, Fazilka, Gurdaspur, Mansa and Pathankot are affected by floods.
Officials said 168 relief camps are operating in the flood-hit areas. The state agriculture department set up a control room for affected farmers so they can get paddy saplings for resowing.
Though the floodwaters have receded in many areas of Punjab and Haryana, authorities were still engaged in relief and rehabilitation works in Sangrur district in Punjab and also plugging breaches in ‘dhussi bundhs’ (earthen embankments) that have come up along the Ghaggar river.
The work on plugging the 150-feet-wide breach that came up along the Ghaggar River in Punjab’s Mansa started on Monday, said officials.
The breach was formed on Saturday in an embankment near Chandpura bundh in Budhlada sub-division of Mansa.
With this breach, river water has entered Gorakhnath and Birewala Dogran villages.
The level of water in these villages was in the range of three-six feet with the authorities asking the villagers to move to safer places. There are apprehensions the water may enter other villages as well.
Sub-divisional magistrate Parmod Singla Monday said the drainage department has deployed a team of its experts to plug the breach.
The Mansa district administration has already set up several relief camps for the flood-affected people, officials said.
The administration has called in the Army and a team of National Disaster Response Force in Mansa, said officials.
Punjab Local Bodies Minister Balkar Singh said the 900-feet-wide breach at Gatta Mundi Kasu in Lohian Khas in Jalandhar will be plugged in a few days as the district administration and Sangat started the work at full pace from both ends. Deputy Commissioner Vishesh Sarangal also visited both sides of the breach to review the status of ongoing work.
He also instructed the officials concerned to further intensify the pace of work so as to accomplish the task at the earliest.
Chief Secretary Verma asked DCs to in the meeting to provide all kinds of relief to the affected people.
It should be ensured the compensation to the next of the kin of the deceased by be paid by July 20 and that for damaged houses be handed over to the affected families by July 24, said an official release.
The chief secretary informed Rs 10 crore has been released from the disaster relied fund to provide clean drinking water to people.
The health department has been directed to make full preparations to combat water-borne diseases, while Rs 40 lakh has been released to districts by the animal husbandry department to protect the livestock from diseases.
The situation was under control, the chief secretary said, adding he was informed that now only two teams of NDRF are deployed in the state — one at Mansa and the other at Sangrur.
