2 breaches near Mandala Channa, snakes pose problems to rescuers

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, August 22

Mosquitoes, rotting carcasses of animals and snakes on the flooded river stretches have added to the ordeal of rescuers people in flooded villages across Shahkot, the worst affected part of the district. One of the villagers even claimed that an alligator was seen at Sardarwala, however, teams of the Army refuted the same.

At Mundi Chohlian and Sardarwala, where teams of the Army have rescued 300 people already, snakes posed an ordeal. Capt Tarit Rai, who heads the rescue operations in the area, said: “We have been going to villages, including Chak Wadala, Mharajwala and Sardarwala. Snakes, pests and rodents are common and one has to be cautious of them but we haven’t heard about any alligators yet. We have been deputed here for the past three days.”

Gurmail Singh from Mharajwala said: “There are about 200 to 300 homes which have been drowned in the area. There is so much water that we can’t even get out of homes. There have been three breaches on the stretch up to Mandala Channa. After the Mandala Channa breach two days ago, two places on the bandh on Mharajwala have also been breached. The grains and belongings have been destroyed.”

“People in Sardarwala are also scared of stepping out after reports of an alligator in the area,” he added.

Sandeep Singh from Mundi Chohlian said: “There have been three breaches upto Mandala Channa and water continues to flow through to the other side with force. Until it subsides, we will remain cut off from the other villages, boats are the only means of reaching inside.”

While the reluctance of people to move out of homes is one of the key obstructions to relief ops, so is the dearth of boats. Even in areas where sufficient boats have been employed, residents say more are needed to ferry people.

Mundi Chohlian resident Sandeep Singh said he had been staying on the banks because he failed to get a boat to go into the Mundi Chohlian village. While there are seven boats on the dhussi bandh stretching from Nawa Pind Khalewal across to Sardarwala and Mundi Chohlian, residents say more boats are needed to provide.

Ranjit Singh from Nawa Pind Khalewal, however, said: “People are being helped by people coming from all parts of the state, however, the problem is that many don’t want to come out and others do not want to leave belongings.”

Sukhbir blames sand mafia

SAD president Sukhbir Badal on Thursday said the Congress government was responsible for the misery wrought on Punjabis due to the devastating “floods” because it did not conduct required flood protection works and also failed to check illegal mining which had eroded river embankments because it was patronised by Congress leaders. 

Tarpaulins needed at villages 

Across villages, one of the severest dearths is of tarpaulins and medicines. Villagers said they were covering themselves with cots of cloth to escape mosquitoes and the scorching. While rations are generously being given both at relief camps and bundhs, medications and tarpaulins were needed by many villagers who were sleeping under the open sky at night.