Heaviest single-day rainfall in two decades floods Bathinda, 6 injured
Bathinda received the heaviest rainfall in two decades in a day on Tuesday; low-lying areas were the worst-hit as water level reached over five feet at some places.
An eight-hour-long downpour, the heaviest in Bathinda in the last two decades in a day, brought the city to a standstill on Tuesday, exposing the ill-preparedness of municipal authorities yet another time.
There was a flood-like situation in most parts of the city with water level reaching over five feet at some places. Low-lying areas such as Civil Lines, Sirki Bazaar, Paras Ram Nagar, 100 Feet Road and Power House Road were the worst-affected by the rainfall that started around 3am and continued till 11am.
The meteorological department said the city received 178mm rainfall.
Water entered houses in many localities, causing damage to buildings and household items and people were forced to remain indoors throughout the day.
The official residences of Bathinda range inspector general of police (IGP) MF Farooqui, district and sessions judge Kamaljeet Lamba, deputy commissioner B Srinivasan and senior superintendent of police (SSP) Nanak Singh in the Civil Lines area were also flooded.
At least six persons were injured after roofs and walls of three houses collapsed on Naruana Road, Amarpura Basti and Bank Colony in Bathinda city, due to a heavy rain. The injured were taken to the civil hospital for treatment.
As many as 35 cows were killed and 12 cattle heads were injured when the roof of a cowshed collapsed at Bhagta Bhai Ka near the town. Local residents rescued the trapped cows.
Boat deployed
Security guards and workers had to bring furniture and other belongings out from the residences of the IGP and the sessions judge with the help of a boat. A breach in the nullah near the Sai Nagar locality is set to aggravate the problem further.
Dr Raj Kumar, an agrometeorology scientist at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU)’s regional research centre in Bathinda, said it was the highest rainfall in a day in the city since 2000. The last highest rainfall in the city was 106 mm on July 5, 2005, he said.
DC Srinivasan said efforts are being made to flush out water from inundated areas. Municipal commissioner Rishipal Singh said the amount of rain received was quite high for the city in a day as the district receives an average rainfall of 350mm in a year.
The city lacks stormwater system required for proper drainage of rainwater. Moreover, desilting of existing sewage lines hasn’t been carried out, choking these lines during the rains and resulting in hours-long waterlogging.
Some Congress leaders and workers visited parts of the city to see that work of flushing out water was done properly. Jaijeet Singh Johal, brother-in-law of Bathinda (Urban) MLA and state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, asked the Congress workers to step out of their houses to help people and ensure drainage of water.