Patiala villages near Ghaggar river on alert as water level reaches danger mark

The Patiala administration has issued an advisory to over a dozen villages near the Ghaggar river, asking them to stay on alert, as water leavel has reached the danger mark. Villagers have been asked to avoid venturing towards the river in Rajpura, Ghanaur and other nearby areas.

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Flowing from the Shivalik Hills, the seasonal river had wreaked havoc in 2010 and 2023, besides causing damage almost every alternate year. Residents claim that it was only after they alerted the local authorities that water was almost touching the bridges that an alert was issued by the administration.

Meanwhile, Patiala DC Preeti Yadav appealed to citizens to remain calm, avoid the spread of rumours, and promptly report any water-related emergencies to the district control room at 0175-2350550.

The Ghaggar, which gets fed by rain in the hills, is dreaded by villagers every monsoon when there is more rain uphills as it wreaks havoc while coming downstream towards Punjab. The river was considered a boon for the farmers of the area but has slowly become a death trap, due to annual floods. The successive governments have failed to act on the issue as the project would require a lot of funds as land needs to be acquired. The lack of coordination between Punjab and Haryana, who are often seen pointing a finger at each other on water issues, is harming the interests of the people in both states.