Sukhu, Jai Ram to demand relief package from Centre for Seraj

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur will travel to New Delhi to urge the Union Government for a special relief package for the flood-ravaged Seraj Assembly constituency. Their decision to join forces emerged during a meeting at the Thunag Rest House in Mandi district late last night. They spent the night among families uprooted by the deluge.

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Both leaders arrived in knee-deep mud and personally engaged with shopkeepers, homeowners and bereaved families, gathering firsthand information of the loss of lives and property and hardships caused by cloudbursts and flashfloods. Sukhu directed officials to get debris cleared round the clock, approve compensation swiftly, especially for families like that of late Budhi Ram, and hold a thorough survey of the damage caused to horticulturists. Walking alongside the Chief Minister, Thakur underscored the spirit of cross-party solidarity in rescue and relief efforts.

Sukhu and Thakur convened a meeting with department heads and ordered zero tolerance for delay in relief work. They tasked the Public Works Department (PWD) with submitting a detailed damage report within a week. They urged the Jal Shakti Department to fast-track the repair of drinking water schemes and pressed the Electricity Board to restore power in blacked out areas such as Janjheli and Pandavshila. Revenue and social welfare officials were instructed to expedite the enrollment of the affected families under the state and central relief programmes.

Sukhu asked the Public Works Department to restore connectivity by installing bailey and suspension bridges for which the government would provide the required funds. He directed the Deputy Commissioner, Mandi, to identify safe locations where prefabricated structures could be installed to provide immediate shelter to people whose homes had been ravaged by cloudbursts and flashfloods.

Sukhu and Jai Ram Thakur also discussed the issue of the resettlement of families which had lost their land in the devastation. Thakur said that cloudburst incidents had caused extensive destruction and with the winter approaching, there was an urgent need to prioritise the rehabilitation of those who had lost everything.

Sukhu directed the officers concerned to coordinate closely with Thakur and prioritise key schemes to accelerate relief efforts through inter-departmental collaboration. He noted that despite the scale of devastation, 60 per cent of drinking water schemes had already been temporarily restored.

He instructed the departments concerned to immediately prepare detailed project reports (DPRs) of damaged roads, bridges, electricity and water schemes. He said that the 56-km Chail Chowk-Janjheli road would be proposed under the Central Road and Infrastructure Fund and asked the officials to prepare its DPR within a week.

Sukhu directed various departments to expedite the restoration of roads and the resumption of disrupted water and electricity supply schemes to ensure quick relief to the affected people. He also instructed the officials concerned to assess the damage suffered by horticulturists.