E-Paper
Punjab SAD demands judicial probe into Madhopur barrage maintenance
Daljit Singh Cheema says only a judicial probe can fix accountability for the ‘negligence’ which led to the collapse of three gates of the Madhopur barrage and subsequent flooding
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Wednesday demanded a judicial probe into the “non-maintenance” of the Madhopur barrage in Pathankot. In a statement here, senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said, “Only a judicial probe can fix accountability for the negligence which led to the collapse of three gates of the Madhopur barrage and subsequent destruction of standing crops across lakhs of acres besides 56 deaths and loss of thousands of livestock.”
Accusing the state government of shifting the blame on a private company, Cheema said, “A show-cause notice was issued to Level Biz Private Limited for submitting a report that 6.2 lakh cusecs of water can pass through the Madhopur headworks. The firm’s subsequent reply revealed that assessing the barrage structure’s health was never in its scope of work.”
Cheema also demanded withdrawal of orders to municipal committees and corporations for allocating tenders for cleaning, garbage lifting, sewerage cleaning and lighting works, alleging that it was an attempt to collect money by making tailor made contracts.
He also flayed the central government’s advisory restricting state governments from giving permission to Sikh jathas to travel to Pakistan for Parkash Purb of Sri Guru Nanak Dev in November.
