CHANDIGARH: As many as 22,455 more persons, living in 89 villages of Punjab, faced the wrath of the overflowing rivers today as floodgates of both Pong and Bhakra dams were partially opened for the third consecutive day. A child reportedly drowned in the floodwaters at Fatewala in Ferozepur.
With around 44,000 people in 130 villages having been affected till yesterday, more than 60,000 people in 219 villages have been hit by floodwaters in the state so far.
Though Punjab has witnessed negligible rainfall over the past three days, it has been battling floods due to discharge of water from the two dams, with reservoirs reaching maximum levels owing to downpour upstream in Himachal.
While the Pong level has started to recede and is down to 1,393.73 feet, it is still over three feet above the maximum level of 1,390 feet. The Bhakra level, however, has dropped to 1,674.94 feet, against the maximum level of 1,680 feet.
This drop in levels resulted in lesser quantity of water being released from the two dams today, as compared to the past two days. Information available with The Tribune shows 80,200 cusecs of water was released from Pong dam, the same as yesterday, and 58,416 cusecs from Bhakra dam, against 74,400 cusecs a day before.
As water from both Sutlej and Beas gushed downstream, the maximum impact of floods was witnessed in Tarn Taran, Fazilka and Ferozepur today, besides Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala and Sangrur. Reports from different parts of the state suggest many villages in these districts continue to remain submerged. In Tarn Taran and Sultanpur Lodhi (Kapurthala), many villages remained inundated, while in Ferozepur, 49 villages along the Sutlej were on the edge as the water level rose dangerously.
Outflow at the Harike headworks, from where the Sutlej flows into Pakistan, stood at 2,84,987 cusecs. However, as the river re-enters India, the discharge at Hussainiwala was recorded at 2,58,910 cusecs.
The Beas, too, continued to flow over the brim. The flow at Passi (Hoshiarpur) was recorded at 2,07,500 cusecs and Dhilwan (Kapurthala) at 2,20,000 cusecs.
Revenue Minister Brahm Shankar Jimpa said the rescue and relief operations in flood-hit areas were going on smoothly. “Many NGOs have been helping the civil and police administration, and NDRF teams. Our priority is to rescue people from flooded areas and then provide them with relief material,” he said.