PM Modi will visit flood-hit Punjab on September 9, 2000 villages submerged, 46 deaths so far…

Chandigarh: These days the whole of Punjab is in the grip of a terrible flood, water is visible everywhere. The death toll in this natural disaster has risen to 46, while standing crops in 1.75 lakh hectares have been destroyed and 1,996 villages in 23 districts have been completely submerged in flood water. Meanwhile, information is coming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the major affected areas of Punjab.

According to information received from sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the flood-affected district of Punjab, Gurdaspur, on September 9 and take stock of the situation. Also, the PM will directly talk to the flood-affected people and farmers.

Giving information about the flood situation, an official said that the death toll due to floods has increased to 46, while standing crops on 1.75 lakh hectares of agricultural land have been submerged in water. Due to heavy rains in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, the rivers Ravi, Sutlej, Beas flowing in Punjab have overflowed. Also, heavy rains in Punjab in the past few days have made the situation more challenging.

He said that relief and rescue operations are going on on a war footing by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Army, Border Security Force, Punjab Police and district officials. Officials said that the water level of Pong Dam decreased marginally to 1,394.19 feet on Saturday, although it remains four feet above its upper limit of 1,390 feet.

Nearly 2000 villages submerged in water
State Finance Minister Harpreet Singh Cheema termed it the worst flood in five decades and said that the continuous rains in Punjab and neighbouring hill states have affected nearly 2,000 villages in all the districts. According to the latest figures, more than 3.87 lakh citizens have been affected, including 46 deaths.

Person swept away in strong current
He said that a 50-year-old man died after being swept away in strong currents in Tali Ghulam village of Ferozepur district. The water level in the district has been dangerously high for the last few days, making life difficult for the villagers living on the riverbank. These figures are for the period from August 1 to September 6. So far 22,854 people have been evacuated from the affected areas to a safe place.

Ghaggar water level reaches dangerous level
Cheema said that the agriculture sector, the backbone of the state’s economy, has suffered extensive damage in 18 districts. Apart from this, infrastructure, houses and livestock have also suffered heavy losses. Cheema said that the water level of Ghaggar river has also crossed the danger mark of 750 feet.

’24 NDRF teams are engaged in relief work’
Cheema said that 200 relief camps have been set up across the state to deal with the massive devastation, where more than 7,000 displaced people are taking shelter. 24 NDRF teams and two State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams are engaged in rescue and relief work with the help of 144 boats in the state.

Slight decrease in water level
The official said that the water level of Pong Dam has decreased marginally to 1,394.19 feet on Saturday, which is slightly less than 1,394.8 feet on Friday evening. The flow of water in the dam has become 47,162 cusecs, which is less than Friday’s 99,673 cusecs, while the outflow remained unchanged at 99,673 cusecs.
At the same time, the water level of Bhakra Dam was 1,678.14 feet against 1,678.47 feet on Friday. Officials said that the inflow of water in this dam built on the Sutlej river was 62,481 cusecs and the outflow was 52,000 cusecs.

Aman Arora blamed the central government

Meanwhile, Punjab minister Aman Arora on Saturday criticized Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan for blaming illegal mining in rivers for the floods and said that the BJP leader visits flood-affected areas for “photographing” instead of announcing financial assistance for the state.

The Aam Aadmi Party accused the BJP of discriminating against Punjab and said that Chauhan did not announce even “a single penny” for flood relief, while the state government had demanded Rs 60,000 crore pending from the Center.

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh visited flood-affected areas in Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala district. He reached the affected areas of Mand Inderpur and talked to the villagers and assured them that the AAP government stands with them with full strength in this difficult time.