More pain for Tarn Taran farmers due to water released from Bhakra dam

Gurbaxpuri

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Tarn Taran, August 16

Panic has gripped farmers of the Mand areas along the Beas and the Sutlej which have got swollen as the water released from the Bhakra dam has flown to the downstream from Harike headworks on Wednesday.

From Harike to Muthianwala, the last village on the India-Pakistan border, 33,000 acres in 35 villages are inundated. Official sources reveal that the water flow downstream had reached up to 1.16 lakh cusecs by 6 pm and was expected to reach 1.5 lakh cusecs till midnight.

DC Baldeep Kaur has convened a meeting of officials and called them to have a close watch on the situation.

“The administration is on the alert. We have started strengthening the dhussi bundh. The water flow is expected to cross three lakh cusecs in the coming days. The administration has called a team of the NDRF to face any challenge,” she said.

As many as 28 villages along the Beas with crops on 28,000 acres is affected. Officials said farmers had failed to resow paddy on 60,000 acres filled with sand or silt.