Army roped in for help in Ferozepur

Anirudh Gupta

Ferozepur, August 19

Alarmed over the continuous rise in the Sutlej water level, three columns of the Army have been roped in for assisting the flood-protection measures along the Hussainiwala headworks. An NDRF team is already present there.

Several villages near Harike are already inundated due to which people in 52 villages have already been asked to move to relief camps set up by the district administration.

Till Monday evening, around 1.59-lakh cusecs was received upstream Harike headworks and 1.48 lakh cusecs was released downstream towards Hussainiwala. 

Mukesh Goyal, SDO posted at Harike, said more water was expected to reach Harike by late Monday evening. 

Meanwhile, DC Chander Gaind along with the technical officials of the Drainage Department inspected the Dhussi bundh and supervised the operations for strengthening it to prevent any colossal damage. The DC said 240 Army men had been deployed along with 12 motorboats in the Makhu and Zira areas to help evacuate the people. Gaind said in case of a breach in the Dhussi bundh, the administration would plug the same for which adequate sandbags were kept in stock. 

Also at some places, the barbed-wire fencing erected along the Indo-Pakistan border has also been damaged and a few BSF border outposts have been submerged along the Zero Line.

Over 45,000 cusecs released into Pak

• Over 45,000 cusecs was released towards Pakistan from the Hussaniwala, located a few yards away from the Indo-Pak border.

• This has been done to keep the water level in the pond below the danger mark. 

• More water is likely to reach Hussainiwala by late Monday evening, which too will be pushed towards Pak.

• Some quantity was released into the Eastern canal, the only water channel from this headworks to various parts of Punjab. 

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7 trains cancelled, two diverted

• Several trains were cancelled after water level crossed the danger mark along bridge no. 84 between Giddarpindi and Makhu on Ferozepur-Jalandhar section on Monday. 

• As per information, the track was considered unfit for running trains due to which seven trains were cancelled, two were diverted and another was partially cancelled.

• Cancelled: Train no. 74932, 74934, 54644, 54643, 74931 (Ferozepur Cantt to Jalandhar), 54638 (Jalandhar City to Hoshiarpur), 54637 (Hoshiarpur to Jalandhar city) and 74395 (Jalandhar City to Ferozepur Cantt).

• Diverted: Train no. 19107 (Bhavnagar- Udhampur Janambhoomi Express) and 19226 (Jammu Tawi-Bathinda Express) via Ferozepur-Ludhiana-Jalandhar Cantt.

• Another train numbered 74933 (Lohian Khas to Ferozepur) was partially cancelled. 

• DRM, Ferozepur Division, Rajesh Aggarwal, after inspection, said water was flowing above the girders of the bridge due to which it was not safe to run trains on track.