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Lucknow: 80 boats in Faizullaganj, but flood-hit locals still pay up to ₹2,000
Santosh Tripathi, a social activist, told HT that he had to pay ₹2,000 for a boat while visiting the area on Monday evening to distribute relief material. “Even for social work we had to pay a fare. Imagine those who are actually still inside,” he said.
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“Where will we get the money to pay ₹1,000 every time we need a boat?” asked a local, as floodwaters stretched across the lanes of Faizullaganj, leaving thousands stranded and turning the route to homes, food and medicines into a costly boat journey.
The irony is hard to miss: the administration now has 80 boats operating in the area, but residents, relief workers and animal rescuers say getting a free ride remains a struggle, forcing some to hire private boatmen charging ₹1,000 to ₹2,000.
Santosh Tripathi, a social activist, told HT that he had to pay ₹2,000 for a boat while visiting the area on Monday evening to distribute relief material. “Even for social work we had to pay a fare. Imagine those who are actually still inside,” he said.
Animal activist Charu Khare said she too had to hire a private boat for ₹1,000 after struggling to reach animals trapped in the flooded area. “There was no boat available for the animals. We walked through the water for a long time and then I hired this private boat for ₹1,000. I had asked the LMC men to take the dogs out, even if they could only drop them outside the flooded stretch,” she said.
Private boatmen operating in Faizullaganj said they normally work on the Gomti and at local ghats such as Kudiya Ghat and Hanumant Dham, but have been ferrying people in the flooded neighbourhood for about 10 days.
Dham Kallu Kashyap, 50, said he charges ₹1,000 to take one person across the flooded stretch. The fare rises to ₹2,000 if the passenger also wants to carry household belongings.
Another boatman, Sripal Nishad, 47, said they make around 20 rounds a day. The boatmen said the charges were also linked to their livelihood.
In Millat Nagar, resident Ayan alleged that his family and others waited for boats for hours but could not get one. He further alleged that some private operators were charging ₹1,000-2,000 per person.
Those unable to afford the fare have resorted to temporary “desi jugaad,” using tyres and bamboo sticks to move through the flooded stretches. “In this time of crisis, instead of wasting money on boats, we decided to make our own using spare tyres, which we brought from a puncture shop,” said Shiv Kumar, a local.
District magistrate Vishak G said the administration had received complaints about local paddle boats charging high fares and had responded by increasing the number of motor boats. “We have added 20 more boats to the fleet of 60 currently running in Faizullaganj,” the DM said.
