E-Paper
Punjab: Army, NDRF rescue 300 from flood-hit villages in Kapurthala
Some parts of Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Rupnagar and Kapurthala districts were submerged following the release of excess water from the Pong and Bhakra dams this week.
Army and NDRF teams on Thursday rescued nearly 300 people from marooned villages in Punjab’s Kapurthala district.
Kapurthala deputy commissioner Karnail Singh said six teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and army used six boats to rescue people caught in the floods and evacuate them to relief camps.
A total of 22 villages have been affected by floods in the Beas river due to the release of excess water from Bhakra Dam, he said while expressing hope that the situation would improve by Friday.
Also read: Punjab: Two boys drown in seasonal rivulet in Gurdaspur village
He said flood-affected people are living on ‘dhusi bundhs (embankments)’ in ‘deras’ to look after their fields, while nearly 40 people are reluctant to leave their marooned houses and their cattle.
Some parts of Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Rupnagar and Kapurthala districts were submerged following the release of excess water from the Pong and Bhakra dams this week.
The army and NDRF teams were also assisting in the rescue and relief work in some of the affected areas of Gurdaspur district.
Medical teams in the district have been sent to houses via boats to check on people stuck in their homes for three days and those who don’t want to move out, said officials.
The Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), which manages the Bhakra and the Pong dams, on Wednesday said it will release excess water in a controlled manner for the next four to five days to take the level in their reservoirs to a safe limit.
The Bhakra dam on the Sutlej and the Pong dam on the Beas are full to capacity after heavy rain in their respective catchment areas.
Last month too, several parts of Punjab were affected by a downpour in the state between July 9 and 11 that flooded vast tracts of farmland.
