Swollen Beas adds to flood woes of Sultanpur Lodhi villagers
Rising water levels in the Beas river threaten low-lying areas in Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala, delaying wheat crop preparation for farmers already affected by floods.
The increasing water flow in the Beas river continued to spell to more troubles for the people residing in the low-lying areas of Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala districts where the water level has been increasing since Tuesday when the river’s catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh witnessed a downpour. It has left the farmers, who have already lost their paddy crop due to the recent floods, worried as they fear that the accumulation of more water will result in a delay in preparation of land for the next crop (wheat).
The water level in around 14 villages situated in Mand areas of Sultanpur Lodhi had receded to 1 foot but it rose considerably on Tuesday, up to four feet in some areas. It increased further by a few inches, villagers said on Wednesday when the water flow in the river was recorded at 1.08 lakh cusecs, double than that of the last week when it had come down to 55,000 cusecs. Built over the Beas river, the Pong dam’s reservoir recorded 1,395.22 feet water level on Wednesday against 1,394.71 feet seen at 3 pm on Tuesday. Last week, the dam had recorded a water level of 1,389 feet, one feet below the danger mark of 1,390 feet.
At the same time, the Pong inflow dipped from 1.72 lakh cusecs to 52,313 cusecs from the catchment areas, including Kangra, Mandi and Kullu districts of Himachal Pradesh. The Bhakra Beas Management Board continued the controlled release of 59,845 cusecs through its spillway gates and turbines downstream into the Beas river.
Villagers have been spearheading the work related to the plugging of advance embankments in order to restrict accumulation of water in Kapurthala’s Sultanpur Lodhi and Hoshiarpur district.
Pargat Singh, a resident of Rampur Gora village, said it was a double whammy for the farmers as they had already lost paddy crop. “The water level has started increasing again in the agricultural fields at a time when farmers are left with a very little window to prepare land for wheat crop. We have been facing a daunting task as we have to wait for the water to recede completely before clearing the silt and sand accumulated in our fields,” he said.
The recent floods had affected 145 villages in Kapurthala district. As many as 5,728 people from the 14 worst-affected Mand villages were displaced. A preliminary report suggested crop loss on 43,426 acres of Kapurthala district. In Hoshiarpur, 20,564 acres were affected as 286 villages were affected by floods.
Visiting the villages situated on the banks of Beas river, Hoshiarpur deputy commissioner Aashika Jain said the water flow was damaging the embankments in Bahadurpur and Rajoa villages which fall in Gurdaspur district, putting villages in Tanda area at risk. “Both district administrations are jointly running relief and safety operations. The officials of the water resources department have been directed to take all necessary measures for the reinforcement of embankments,” she said.
Embankment work on war footing
As the flow of water in the Sutlej river continued to damage the dhussi bandh in Mandala Chhanna village of Jalandhar, the work on installation of a new ring embankment is being carried out on a war footing. Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal said these embankments are being installed to divert the river’s course and save the dhussi bandh.
“It is the only way to secure the embankment, which has been facing continuous erosion due to the water pressure,” he said.
