Panjab Flood Toll: 29 Lives Lost, 16K People Evacuated & 300K Acres Crops Destroyed

Panjab is battling one of its worst floods in recent years, with 29 lives lost and more than 15.6K people evacuated across 12 districts after incessant rains triggered large-scale devastation. The floods have displaced thousands of people, destroyed crops in 300K acres, caused severe damage to property, infrastructure, and livestock. According to Revenue, Rehabilitation, and Disaster Management Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian, nearly 256K people have been affected in 1,044 villages. There are multiple reasons for the floods in Panjab which are the flood plains of Himalayan states. One: reckless development on the lower Himalayas and denuding the mountains. Two: the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) controlled by the Indian Union Ministry of Power currently headed by Manohar Lal Khattar, former Chief Minister of Haryana. BBMB governs the Bhakra Dam on river Satluj and Pong Dam on river Beas. Punjab State Power Corporation Limited governs the Ranjit Sagar Dam on river Ravi. Bhakra and Pong store extra water because non-riparian states Haryana and Rajasthan lay claim on them owing to the flawed Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966. This reduces the dams’ capacity to accommodate heavy inflow and as reservoirs reach the danger mark, they release huge amounts of water. Three: the Panjab government has not desilted its rivers in the last sixty years. Four: legal and illegal mining have weakened riverbanks so water spills over to agricultural lands, villages, and towns. Five: disputed ownership of parts of land on riverbed where people claim ownership but govt denies it. Six: lack of preparation by Panjab govt though the Metrological Department had predicted heavy rains. Panjab received 1272% extra rain on 30-31 Aug. Though Panjab has seen floods in 2019, 2023 and now, the comparison of these floods is being made to the 1988 floods when the Bhakra Dam had opened its gates up to 20 feet to release extra water. The floods have now moved from rivers Ravi and Beas in north Panjab to river Satluj in central Panjab. Rains will continue until 5 Sept (earlier coverage).