Floods Claim 30 Lives and Impact 1,400 Villages
More Than 1.48 Lakh Hectares of Crops Damaged in Severe Floods
Chandigarh, September 2
Punjab’s Revenue, Rehabilitation, and Disaster Management Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian, announced today that the state is grappling with one of the most extensive floods in recent decades, affecting 23 districts, claiming 30 lives, and impacting over 3.54 lakh people. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, the state government is working tirelessly to provide timely relief, large-scale evacuations, and rehabilitation for families in flood-hit areas.
The Cabinet Minister shared that 19,597 individuals have been safely evacuated from low-lying and flood-affected regions. Significant evacuations include Gurdaspur (5,581), Ferozepur (3,432), Amritsar (2,734), Fazilka (2,422), Hoshiarpur (1,615), Kapurthala (1,428), and Pathankot (1,139), along with other districts such as Barnala (369), Jalandhar (474), Rupnagar (65), Mansa (163), Moga (115), and Tarn Taran (60).
A total of 174 relief camps have been set up across Punjab to provide shelter and essential services to affected families. These include 29 camps in Barnala, 26 in Patiala, 25 in Gurdaspur, 20 in Hoshiarpur, 16 in Amritsar, 14 in Pathankot, 10 in Fazilka, 9 in Moga, 8 each in Ferozepur and Jalandhar, 4 in Kapurthala, 3 in Rupnagar, and 1 each in Mansa and Sangrur. Currently, 5,167 people are housed in these camps, with the highest numbers in Hoshiarpur (1,041), Fazilka (1,304), Ferozepur (706), Gurdaspur (424), Amritsar (371), Barnala (369), and Jalandhar (474), followed by Mansa (163), Moga (115), Sangrur (60), Kapurthala (57), Pathankot (48), and Rupnagar (35).
watch….United Sikhs Leads the Charge in Punjab Flood Relief
Mundian reported that 1,400 villages across the state have been inundated. The worst-affected districts include Gurdaspur (324 villages), Amritsar (135), Hoshiarpur (119), Kapurthala (115), Mansa (108), Ferozepur (93), Pathankot (82), Fazilka (72), Jalandhar (62), and Tarn Taran (66). Other affected areas include Moga (48 villages), Rupnagar (44), Barnala (34), Ludhiana (26), Sri Muktsar Sahib (23), Patiala (16), Faridkot (15), Sangrur (13), and Malerkotla (5).
The floods have affected a total population of 3,54,626 across 13 districts. Gurdaspur reported the highest impact with 1,45,000 affected individuals, followed by Amritsar (1,17,534), Ferozepur (38,112), and Fazilka (21,562). Other significantly affected districts include Pathankot (15,053), Kapurthala (5,748), SAS Nagar (7,000), Hoshiarpur (1,960), and Jalandhar (991). Smaller impacts were recorded in Barnala (403), Moga (800), Rupnagar (300), and Mansa (163).
The Minister highlighted that 1,48,590 hectares of standing crops have been damaged, with the most affected districts being Gurdaspur (40,193 hectares), Mansa (27,291), Amritsar (23,000), Kapurthala (14,934), Ferozepur (14,665), Tarn Taran (11,883), Hoshiarpur (5,971), Jalandhar (3,000), Pathankot (2,442), SAS Nagar (2,000), Patiala (1,450), Moga (949), Rupnagar (300), Faridkot (141), Ludhiana (108), Bathinda (97), Sri Muktsar Sahib (84), Fazilka (64), SBS Nagar (7), Malerkotla (5), Sangrur (3), Barnala (2), and Fatehgarh Sahib (1).
For rescue and relief operations, 23 NDRF teams are deployed across Pathankot (1), Gurdaspur (6), Amritsar (6), Ferozepur (3), Fazilka (3), Bathinda (1), Jalandhar (2), and Rupnagar (1). The Army, Air Force, and Navy have deployed 12 columns, with 8 on standby and 2 engineer columns, alongside approximately 35 helicopters for rescue and relief efforts. The BSF is providing ground support in border districts. Additionally, 114 boats and one state helicopter are being utilized for evacuations and relief material distribution.
Mundian noted that between August 1 and September 2, 30 human lives were lost across 12 districts, with Pathankot reporting the highest toll of 6 deaths. Three individuals remain missing in Pathankot. Preliminary reports indicate significant livestock and infrastructure damage, with a detailed assessment to follow once floodwaters recede.
