The Panjab government has finalized its report on recent floods, pegging the losses at USD 1.45B. The state government has pegged a crop loss at 50-100% in 300K acres, at 25-50% in 200K acres, and detailed the wreckage across 14 departments. The document has been sent to the Indian Union Ministry of Home Affairs. Meanwhile, the farmers wait for compensation and are making their own efforts to clear silt from fields. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (Sikh body) and non-government organizations are footing the diesel expenses for tractors. Immediately after the floods there was a lot of support but now those who came to help have started going back to their villages to sow the next crop. On 8 Oct, farmers protested at 112 locations across 19 districts of Panjab demanding better compensation. The protest call was given by Sarwan Singh Pandher's farmer union, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (Bharat). Pandher said the demands include USD 788 per acre compensation for damaged paddy crops and 10% of that amount for farm laborers, full compensation for livestock and poultry losses, restoration of damaged houses, and fertilizers and seeds for wheat sowing. Concurrently, over 25 union ministers from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have toured villages across the state. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party has termed these trips as ‘disaster tourism’. Panjab BJP has filed a 'charge sheet' against the Bhagwant Singh Mann-led government for 'monumental collapse of governance, preparedness, and accountability' in tackling the recent floods in the state. This isn’t a legal indictment, but is part of the party’s broader 'rural outreach' strategy to increase its foothold in areas where it has virtually no political presence or is facing active antagonism. In a gesture of solidarity with the victims of recent floods, Chandigarh Business Council president Neeraj Bagga said, 'This time the shopkeepers from Sector 17 plaza will be individually dressing up their shops but there would be no grand lighting display' (earlier coverage).
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