Punjab is witnessing the worst floods in decades as incessant rainfall and swollen rivers have submerged villages, towns, and farmlands in the districts, including Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Fazilka, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, and Amritsar. Heavy rains deepened the crisis of the Punjab Floods, with 12 of 23 districts under red alert and over 2.56 lakh people affected. The Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi rivers surged, inundating large areas and damaging over 2.3 lakh acres of farmland, and devastating the paddy crop of the Kharif season. Additionally, the state recorded 29 deaths and three missing persons due to drowning and electrocution. Thousands have been evacuated from affected areas, and nearly 7,144 people are sheltered in 129 relief centres.
Most severely affected districts in the Punjab Floods
The most severely affected Districts in the recent Punjab floods include Amritsar (23,000 hectares), Mansa (17,005 hectares), Kapurthala (14,934 hectares), and Tarn Taran (11,883 hectares). Paddy fields, which are one of the significant crops of the kharif season, are among the worst affected, which might affect the food supply chain. Furthermore, the Indian Rice Exporters’ Federation stated that Punjab could see a 20-25 per cent decrease in basmati rice production this year as almost a quarter of the crop was already devastated and even irrecoverable.
Rescue and relief operations by the Indian Army, Air Force, BSF, NDRF and NGOs are underway. A ray of hope has been shown by the Chandigarh-based Indian Met Department as its Director, Surender Pal, has anticipated a significant decrease in the rainfall in Punjab from today till Sept 8th.
The recent Punjab floods are reminiscent of 1988 deluge
The recent Punjab floods have reminded 1988 deluge, when the water level in the villages had gone up to 12 feet. It had left people stranded on terraces and trees. According to an India Today archive report, during the 1988 Punjab floods, nearly 9,000 villages, out of the 12,989 in the state, were severely affected. Out of these, around 2,500 villages were completely abandoned, leading to the loss of lives and property. As per government records, 1,500 people were killed, whereas 500 went missing in these terrible floods.