Panic as swollen Tangri water enters Ambala residential areas

Ambala, July 22

Panic gripped residents of the colonies situated on the Tangri riverbed and nearby areas after the seasonal river swelled and its water entered residential areas today.

After the local administration sounded an alert that the water level in the seasonal river is on the rise, residents were seen shifting their belongings to the upper floor of their houses.

Water from the overflowing river also reached the Ambala-Jagadhri road, causing inconvenience to the commuters.

Amit Kumar, a resident of New Aman Nagar, said, “We have already suffered heavy losses due to the overflowing of Tangri this year, and now again its water has started entering residential areas. The government should help us as a majority of people living in these colonies are daily wagers.”

In the evening, residents were seen sitting on the Tangri Bundh road, waiting for the water to recede.

Rajni, another resident, said, “We had a hard time clearing the mud and sludge from the houses. We will have to witness a similar situation again. The sludge had ruined all our clothes and furniture. Due to water entering houses repeatedly, the foundation of a large number of houses got weakened and the walls have developed cracks.”

Haryana AAP vice-president Chitra Sarwara, who visited the affected areas, said, “The administration should make arrangements for safe evacuation of all people living in the affected areas. It should also deploy mobile toilets for the convenience of people. The flood-hit should be provided adequate compensation for their losses.”

She had a discussion about the situation with Deputy Commissioner Shaleen on the Tangri bridge.

Ambala Cantonment SDM Satinder Siwach said, “The colonies on the riverbed and Prabhu Prem Puram and some other low-lying areas have witnessed waterlogging but the water level is receding gradually. There is no fresh alert. We are keeping a close watch on the situation.”

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij also reached the Tangri bridge and enquired about the situation. Ambala City MLA Aseem Goel visited Ghaggar river, Dadiyana village and Manmohan Nagar to take stock of the situation.

The water level in Markanda and Ghaggar rivers also increased, triggering panic among nearby residents.

Deputy Commissioner Shaleen said, “About 25,000 cusecs of water was recorded in Tangri river earlier in the day, which fell to around 17,000 cusecs at 6 pm. The level is expected to decrease gradually in the next few hours. Similarly, the water level had increased in the Ghaggar too, but it is now decreasing. There is no need to panic.”