30 lives lost due to floods in Punjab; Governor, CM visit affected areas

Chandigarh, Sep 2 (PTI) Battling its worst floods in decades, Punjab has been impacted by nature's fury with the deluge claiming 30 lives and impacting more than 3.5 lakh people as the governor and the chief minister visited some of the affected areas on Tuesday.

Earlier, 12 districts were under the impact of the floods, according to a bulletin issued by the state authorities on the situation from August 1 till September 1.

According to the bulletin issued on Tuesday, all 23 districts of the state have been declared as hit by the floods.

A total of 1,400 villages have been declared as affected, impacting 3,54,626 people so far, with the deluge claiming 30 lives in 12 districts. Pathankot has reported the highest death toll of six.

Nearly 20,000 people have so far been evacuated from the flood-hit areas.

Punjab is battling against one of the worst floods since 1988.

In solidarity with the people of the state, all IPS officers of Punjab have resolved to contribute one day's salary to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund, DGP Gaurav Yadav said, adding, "This contribution is a humble gesture to support the ongoing relief-and-rehabilitation efforts." Expressing solidarity with the people of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, who are bearing the brunt of the calamity caused by heavy rains, the Haryana government on Tuesday released a financial assistance of Rs 5 crore each for both states from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

Meanwhile, Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann separately visited some of the affected areas on Tuesday.

Visiting flood-affected villages in Ferozepur district, a visibly emotional Mann said Punjab has always stood with the country in times of crisis and hoped that the country would reciprocate now.

Expressing grave concern over the "meagre compensation" given to people for losses suffered due to natural disasters, he sought an upward revision in the Centre's relief norms.

The chief minister toured the flood-affected areas of Ferozepur on a boat. He said though substantial funds are available with the State Disaster Response Fund, the existing norms prescribed under the guidelines issue by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) "remain grossly inadequate to compensate farmers, livestock owners and vulnerable communities".

Mann pointed out that the notified norms are "totally unrealistic as compared to the actual losses suffered by the farmers".

He again sought the release of Punjab's Rs 60,000 crore "pending" funds from the Centre, saying he is demanding the state's "rights" and not "begging" for it in the wake of floods in the region.

The swollen Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers and seasonal rivulets have flooded large parts of Punjab following heavy rain in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Mann immediately after returning to Delhi from China on Monday to enquire about the flood situation in the state and assured him of all help.

Kataria visited Ferozepur and the severely affected areas of Tarn Taran.

The governor held a meeting with administration officials in the border district of Ferozepur.

Kataria, who began his visit to the flood-hit districts from Ferozepur, discussed the relief-and-rehabilitation measures underway for the affected families and directed the officials to ensure timely assistance and effective coordination.

Deputy Commissioner Deepshikha Sharma and Senior Superintendent of Police Bhupinder Singh attended the meeting.

Kataria also visited Tarn Taran later in the day. He assessed the flood situation at Harike Headworks and reviewed the relief-and-rescue operations with administration and Army officials. The governor also issued instructions to provide timely and effective assistance to the affected families.

Kataria is scheduled to visit Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Pathankot on Wednesday, and Hoshiarpur and Sri Anandpur Sahib on Thursday, officials said.

During his Ferozepur visit, the governor also met the affected people at a relief camp in Bare village and listened to their problems.

He inspected the Hussainiwala Headworks and the Border Security Force (BSF) post and later, paid tributes at the Hussainiwala War Memorial.

Relief-and-rescue operations by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Army, BSF, police and district authorities are going on in the affected areas.

Meanwhile, a fresh spell of rain lashed several parts of the state.

According to the weather department, several places in Punjab received rain in the 24-hour period ending at 8:30 am on Tuesday.

Among other places, Amritsar received 18.3 mm rain, Patiala 70.5 mm, Bathinda 5 mm, Faridkot 1 mm, Gurdaspur 32.8 mm, Mansa 10 mm and Mohali 44.5 mm.

Between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm, a few parts of the state witnessed rain, including Ferozepur, Mansa, Pathankot and Sri Anandpur Sahib.

In view of the inclement weather conditions and prevailing flood-like situations, all 43 skill development centres running in association with the Punjab Skill Development Mission will remain closed till Wednesday to ensure the safety and well-being of the stakeholders, minister Aman Arora said.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state on Monday announced a closure of all colleges, universities and polytechnic institutes till September 3 in view of the continuous heavy rainfall. PTI SUN RC