Canal breach floods Amritsar localities after boring work triggers leak

Soil displacement during construction, coupled with uncapped legacy pipelines near Kot Mitt Singh and Sultanwind, allowed the escaping water to flow through old passages directly into populated neighbourhoods

A breach in the Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) near Chatiwind on Tarn Taran Road flooded nearby residential areas in Amritsar on Saturday, prompting the administration to launch emergency measures. The waterlogging triggered panic among residents.

Water enters neighbourhoods near Chatiwind through uncapped legacy pipes; canal water flow lowered to plug leak. (HT)

Officials said the breach occurred during subterranean pipe-boring work beneath the canal as part of a project to supply canal water for domestic use. Soil displacement during construction, coupled with uncapped legacy pipelines near Kot Mitt Singh and Sultanwind, allowed the escaping water to flow through old passages directly into populated neighbourhoods.

In response, the local administration lowered the canal’s water level to halt further outflow while emergency repair work began. The situation was brought largely under control by the time of filing this report.

Along with local residents, civil defence teams worked to prevent more water from entering the residential area. Sandbags and other material were placed to plug the breach and contain the flow.

Amritsar South AAP MLA Inderbir Singh Nijjar and Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla inspected the site to oversee the operations. Nijjar said no major damage had been reported so far, though he warned that a larger structural collapse could have led to severe losses. He said the canal’s water level had been reduced to control the flow and further measures were being taken to bring the situation under control.

MP Aujla said old pipelines and passages near the Kot Mitt Singh bridge on Tarn Taran Road and in the Sultanwind area had not been closed or capped earlier, due to which water started flowing out after the soil was removed. To prevent further damage, traffic movement on the road along the canal was stopped as a precautionary measure.