Girdawari begins, compensation to reach affected families within 45 days

The girdawari to assess the losses in the flood-affected villages of the district started today. The administration has assured that the survey would be completed at the earliest and that the compensation would reach the affected families within 45 days.

Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney held a meeting with officials in Ajnala and instructed all departments to complete their reports quickly. She said the survey must include damage to crops, livestock, houses and land covered with sand so that every family receives timely compensation.

The Deputy Commissioner directed that before starting the survey in any village, the teams must make an announcement at the local gurdwara to inform the village representatives and involve the panchayat secretary. This way, everyone in the village will know about the survey and can report their losses, she said.

She said villages where crops and houses have been completely destroyed should be given priority so that compensation can be released without any delay. As per government policy, farmers will receive Rs 20,000 per acre for crop loss. For houses, the compensation is Rs 1.20 lakh in case of complete damage and Rs 40,000 for partial damage.

Families who have lost their cattle due to the floods will also be compensated, she added. In addition, families will be given money to remove sand accumulated in their fields. Land that has been completely eroded by the river will also be covered in the survey so that the affected families get relief.

Earlier in the day, 25 teams of patwaris from the revenue department, and 48 teams of junior engineers from the Panchayat Department, PWD, and PUDA were dispatched for the affected areas from Cooperative Sugar Mill at Bhala pind.

Ajnala MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal asked the teams to send their reports to the SDM office within a fortnight. He said the SDM and other senior officials would check at least 10 per cent of the reports by visiting the villages and ensure that no affected family is left out.