Rehabilitation of flood-hit villages on war footing: DC
Gurbaxpuri
Tarn Taran, July 17
Even as the downstream flow of Sutlej river has damaged crops in 35 villages and thousands of families living in the Patti area, the water level in the river has begun to recede upstream.
Deputy Commissioner Baldeep Kaur said the district administration had initiated its rehabilitation works on a war-footing. The DC said that as the water level had receded to the normal position, all the seven relief camps had been closed. The DC said that four of these camps were closed on Sunday, while 26 families taking shelter in three camps will vacate these camps on Monday evening. She said 51 houses had been partially damaged in the floods. The DC added that the administration was to release grants to repair the damaged houses.
She said teams of the Health and the Animal Husbandry Department were actively working in the flood-affected areas. As many as 198 cattle had been treated for foot rot. Teams of the Agriculture Department have started distributing paddy saplings to be planted in 2,000 acres and the department was also distributing four quintals of paddy seeds.
Farmer Mahaveer Singh Gill of Toot village said the main problem of the affected farmers was that fields in the flood-affected areas had gone unproductive as these had been filled with sand and silt of the river.
Baba Angrej Singh, head of Gurdwara Gupatsar, Muthianwala, who had been providing boarding and lodging facilities to thousands of flood-hit people of the affected area said that in Patti subdivision, besides Muthianwala, Ram Singh Wala, Radhalkae and some other villages were the worst affected. Baba Sukha Singh of Sarhali Sahib, who was active in providing help to the affected residents, distributed relief material for residents and animals today.
