Breach in bundh has villagers dejected

“We spent the whole night trying to protect the bundh, wearing gunny sacks on our heads to shield ourselves from the rain — but in the end, it was breached,” said Shaminder Singh of Aahli Kalan village, Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala.

After nearly a month of relentless effort, the temporary bundh at Aahli Kalan was breached today. Villagers, along with volunteers, local societies and good Samaritans, had been working day and night to protect the fields of more than 25 villages from flooding. The villagers took turns fulfilling their duty to guard the bundh.

“This will impact over 40,000 acre of farmland,” Shaminder Singh added.

Various disturbing videos of breach in the bundh started circulating on social media in the morning where villagers could be heard saying that it was the end. "What will we do. Our fields are destroyed, what is the point of living," an elderly villager was heard saying in a video.

Rashpal Singh, another villager, shared that he too had stayed up all night in a desperate attempt to fortify the bundh. “We tried everything, but it was beyond our control.”

He added that the similar situation was there during 2023. "Marginal farmers will be badly hit, they are devastated," he said.

"Things are gone out of hand. We will now go towards dhussi bundh to ensure that it remains intact. Whatever we can do, we will do," villagers said.