Punjab Red Cross Society flags off 9 trucks of relief material for flood-affected people

Chandigarh, Sep 5 (PTI) Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria Friday flagged off nine trucks of relief material for flood-affected people on behalf of the state's Red Cross Society.

All these nine trucks carrying relief material are being sent to Ferozepur, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Ropar, Ludhiana, Malerkotla and Jalandhar. They will be delivered to the needy flood-affected people through Red Cross units of the respective districts, an official statement said.

The relief material includes family tents, tarpaulins, kitchen sets, blankets and household items including sanitary pads, rations, soaps and the like. In addition, Punjab Red Cross in collaboration with NGOs has also sent 100 tonnes of animal fodder to the flood-affected areas.

On this occasion, Kataria, who is also the Chandigarh Administrator, said, "It is the moral duty of the society to provide relief and assistance to the affected families in disasters like floods. This cooperation of Red Cross and various organisations further strengthens the tradition of Punjab -- service, cooperation and human values." Recently, he visited seven flood-affected districts of the state and closely observed the situation there, the governor said, adding that it was time that all came together to help the affected families and provide relief to them.

Notably, Punjab is battling its worst floods since 1988.

The governor said, "The people of Punjab have always supported each other in difficult situations. Today also, we all have to unite and provide support and cooperation to the affected people so that they can return to normal life soon." Earlier on Thursday, Chandigarh Red Cross had sent two trucks carrying relief material for the flood victims of Amritsar district. They included 500 kits of various household items, sanitary pad kits and 500 units of utensils. PTI SUN KSS KSS