Death toll in Punjab floods rises to 53

Chandigarh, Sep 10 (PTI) The toll due to floods in Punjab rose to 53 with one more death recorded in the last 24hours, said officials on Wednesday.

Punjab Revenue Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian said 2,185 villages across 23 districts have been affected because of the deluge.

One more casualty occurred in Ferozepur during the last 24 hours, pushing the overall death toll to 53 across 15 districts. Meanwhile, three persons are still untraceable in Pathankot.

He further said 91 more people were rescued during the last 24 hours, taking the total number of evacuees to 23,297. Currently, 115 relief camps are operational across the state, accommodating 4,533 people.

Mundian stated that crops on 1,91,981.45 hectares in 18 districts have been damaged.

The minister said flood havoc has struck 2,185 villages across 22 districts till September 10 with the affected population crossing 3,88,466.

The minister highlighted that 14 NDRF teams, two SDRF teams, 18 Army columns and 1 Engineer Task Force are actively deployed in flood-ravaged regions.

Punjab is currently facing one of its worst flood disasters in decades. The floods are a result of swollen rivers the Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi along with seasonal rivulets caused by heavy rainfall in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

Besides, heavy rains in recent days in Punjab also aggravated the flooding situation. PTI CHS SKY SKY