Fear of Ghaggar flood looms as repair work incomplete

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, June 14

The monsoon is expected to hit the state this week, but major repairs and strengthening work around the Ghaggar are still pending. Even two years after the Ghaggar crossed the danger mark and entered villages in Patiala and Sangrur districts, damaging hundreds of acres of fertile land, no permanent solution has been found to tame the floodwaters.

Alleging hundreds of crores had been spent on temporary measures, residents of the flood-prone villages said rampant corruption in carrying out annual repair and maintenance had exposed them to Ghaggar floods’ fury.

“Wild growth blocks the natural flow of water in many villages. Even there’s no check on encroachment on the river banks. The rains can arrive any time now, but the Irrigation Department has just started the work in some villages; in many others, it’s yet to begin,” said Gurpreet Singh, a resident of Darauli village.

“Our teams are working hard to ensure minimum damage due to floods. We have almost completed major work in several villages where Ghaggar banks and bridges needed repair. We are hopeful the work will be over before the rains,” said Ramandeep Singh, XEN (drainage), Patiala division.

For the past almost two decades, politicians have been milking the Ghaggar issue without offering a permanent solution. According to officials, this year a budget of Rs 4 crore has been sanctioned for the urgent repairs and strengthening work of the Ghaggar and the “work is yet to be completed”. “The work continues at full speed and we expect to complete it in a fortnight from now,” said irrigation officials.

A former chief engineer said the seriousness of the department could be judged from the fact that a majority of the technical staff were mechanical engineers who weren’t trained in dealing with floods. “Flood-control measures like cleaning drains, maintenance of protection bundhs are entirely a civil work and has nothing do with mechanical engineering.”