Ghaggar Flood Threat Keeps Residents On Tenterhooks In Patiala

Once considered a lifeline for the villages alongside its bank, the river Ghaggar is now being termed as the ‘River of Sorrow’ due to the occasional floods it has caused in the past over a decade. While a majority of the north is hit by floods with the sudden and early arrival of monsoon, residents of nearby villages alongside the banks of the Ghaggar are a worried lot.

While the water level is below the danger mark as of now, villagers fear the worst if it rains more in the days ahead.

Seasonal floods during heavy monsoon are a norm in these areas with loss to both life and property after heavy inflow of water in Ghaggar which then floods nearby villages. While the district administration and the irrigation department has started some de-silting work to clear its bed, heavy rains in the hills and sudden rise in the water table causes floods as the sheet spread is not possible due to construction and agricultural activities near the river bank.

He said while Haryana has raised a concrete wall to save its villages, Punjab needs to do something similar to save its residents.

Flowing from the Shivalik hills, this seasonal river passes through the districts of Patiala and Sangrur, where it causes the maximum damage during monsoonal floods. In 2010, floods caused by this river had caused a huge loss to thousands of residents in Patiala and Sangrur. Deputy Commissioners of Patiala and Sangrur are on their toes to ensure that the 2010 situation is not repeated. Work on cleaning the river bed and strengthening the river banks is on.

The Sangrur administration has geared up with boats and temporary evacuation centers as well.
The Patiala DC GK Singh said that they have completed over 60 per cent of the work to tackle floods. Grants were released to the irrigation department ahead of the monsoon period to ensure that they are able to save our villages from floods, he added

he stated that they had set a control room for that and all flood control measures are in place to tackle the problem.

Meanwhile, even as the administration claims to have geared up for flood relief work, villagers are already prepared to shift their ration to the first floor of the house and have set up temporary kitchens.

Samana resident Parminder Singh, who runs a shop told that this is an annual ritual wherein they shift their belongings and kitchen on to the first floor.
A few decades ago, this river used to spread its water in its banks, which were almost 500-metres-wide at certain places, due to which, the excess water got spread and caused minimal damage.

But with the passage of time, illegal buildings came up alongside the river, and the damage increases every year.