Work begins to remove sand, silt from inundated farms

The people of Punjab have begun tackling the challenge posed by the devastation caused by the floods.

More than 25 tractors started the work of removing sand and silt from the fields of flood-affected farmers of Baupur Mand villages in Sultanpur Lodhi which had got hit by floods on August 11. The initiative is being led by Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal, who himself drove a tractor for several hours to symbolically launch the effort.

Most farmers in the Baupur Mand region are small and marginal, owning between two to five acres of land. Many others had sown crops on leased land, which were completely destroyed by the floods.

Along with the widespread destruction of crops, a thick layer of silt and sand had settled across the fields. To restore the land to cultivable condition, a large number of youth have come from distant areas to help the affected farmers. Among them, 10 tractors have come from Ramgarh village near Nabha in Patiala district, with the young volunteers now working for the third consecutive day.

Similarly, four tractors have arrived from Rahimpur village of Jalandhar, and another four were brought by a young volunteer named Jasvir Singh. The remaining tractors belong to nearby villages. The silt and sand removal work was launched on a war footing, with the extracted sand being used to strengthen the embankment.

The temporary embankment around Baupur stretches up to nearly 32 kilometers. During the floods, it was breached at eight different points. As a result, crops across thousands of acres in 17 villages of the Mand area were completely destroyed. With community support, the first breach was repaired on the night of September 20. Work to repair the remaining seven breaches will begin soon.

Expressing gratitude to all those who came forward to help, Seechewal said that people from far and wide have stood with the affected farmers. He added that the people of Punjab have always supported one another in times of hardship.