Army, NDRF evacuate over 200 people from flood-affected areas in Punjab’s Sultanpur Lodhi

Sultanpur Lodhi (Punjab), Jul 12 (PTI) Army and NDRF teams evacuated over 200 people from flood-affected Mand areas in Sultanpur Lodhi city of Punjab on Wednesday, officials said.

Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner Karnail Singh said the district administration shifted the rescued 223 people to relief camps, where they are being provided with ration, drinking water and other items of need.

“NDRF, Punjab Police and Army personnel have been working round the clock to evacuate people from flood-effected areas. Yesterday, the NDRF rescued 59 people,” he said.

Singh said the personnel from the Army and the police also evacuated 30 more people from different areas to safe places.

He said the administration provided dry as well as green fodder to people for their livestock. A team of veterinary doctors is also vaccinating domesticated animals, he added.

Renowned environmentalist and ruling AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal and his followers were assisting the authorities to plug a 100-foot-wide breach on the bundh near Mandala village with the help of sandbags.

Seechewal told PTI that it was a very difficult task to plug the breach as the flow of gushing water was very high and that they are concentrating to strengthen the bundh near the breach to check further erosion. He added that the breach would be plugged when the flow in the Sutlej river decreases.

Relief measures were going on a war footing in Punjab and Haryana in affected areas on Wednesday as many parts of the two states remained flooded following incessant rainfall in the region.