Jalandhar district admn’s failure to plug two bundh breaches angers villagers

Aparna Banerji

Jalandhar, July 31

The district administration’s reluctance to plug the 1,800 feet breaches on temporary bundhs on the Beas river in Sultanpur Lodhi has drawn a flak from villagers. The villagers say the government remembers them for vote bank politics but has ‘abandoned’ them during the crisis.

There is 600 feet breach on temporary bundh at the Baupur Kadim village and 1200 feet breach on temporary bundh at Ali Kalan village. These bundhs were constructed by villagers to save their crops and properties.

As the district administration failed to initiate measures, villagers led by Baba Sukha Singh of Sarhali started the kar sewa to plug bundhs. These twin breaches caused flooding of over 23 villages in Sultanpur Lodhi.

The state government has also directed the district administration to demarcate encroachments (homes in the catchment areas) of the Sutlej and Beas rivers.

However, villagers said their landholdings had been on the same spot for the past 45 to 55 years. As per the district administration, 1,040 houses across 23 villages were inundated due to floods. Of these 1,040 dwellings, 850 are outside dhussi bundh while 190 are in the catchment areas of the rivers.

Chandra Jyoti, SDM, Sultanpur Lodhi, said, “These are temporary bundhs constructed by residents. Hence the plugging work was started by the people on their own. However, materials and sand needed for the work have been provided by the administration. Relief and rescue has also been stepped in these villages.”

The SDM said, “Due to standing water, assessment of houses in the river bed will be carried out in 15 days. A girdawari will be conducted to assess damage to crops in the catchment areas. The government has also sought demarcations and zone-wise mapping of encroachments in the river bed areas, which will be carried out once the water level goes down.”

Sukhpal Singh, SDO, Drainage Department, said, “These are temporary bundhs that have not been constructed by the government. So, we can’t plug breaches in these bundhs.”

Kuldeep Singh, from Baupur Jadid village, who lost his uncle days ago due to heart attack after floods hit his village, says, “Do governments think of our villages only when there is an election? Isn’t helping us their responsibility? We have registries for homes and pay all our bills. We have been living here for the past 55 years.”

He said, “No government leader or official visited us after my uncle died. Only MLA Rana Inder Partap came to meet us. The government teams provided relief from the bridge on the bundh and went away. We have been abandoned.”

Paramjit Singh from Baupur Kadim village said, “Our homes are older than the dhussi bundh. During floods, they suddenly started calling our bundhs temporary structures.”