Holds CM Bhagwant Mann responsible for floods, not holding flood review meetings
SRI MUKATSAR SAHIB: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today flagged off 100 trucks of maize silage for distribution in flood affected areas in Ajnala constituency even as he called for an independent probe into the mismanagement of the Ranjit Sagar dam and Madhopur barrage which increased the menace of the recent floods manifold.
The SAD president, who flagged off 100 trucks of maize silage for Ajnala from Warring village in this constituency, also disclosed that trucks with compressed hay fodder had also been despatched to flood affected areas.
Speaking to newsmen on the occasion, the SAD president said a few lakh acres of land could have been saved from devastation by flood waters had the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government managed the Ranjit Sagar dam and Madhopur barrage professionaly. “A study of the water release from Ranjit Sagar dam shows that the government did not release water for twenty days before the floods. Instead of streamlining the release the government let water accumulate in the dam and then released it once it crossed the danger mark. Continuous release of more than two lakh cusecs of water for three days wiped out paddy crop in more than one lakh acres of land”. He said similarly in the case of the Madhopur barrage the government did not heed requests in January to conduct repairs and panicked and released three lakh cusecs of water in one go resulting in the collapse of the barrage gates and increasing the suffering of the people in the border belt. “The SAD demands an independent probe into the entire issue to fix responsibility and punishment”.
Asserting that chief minister Bhagwant Mann was directly responsible for failing farmers, Mr Badal said “first flood review committee meetings were not held. Then when the floods struck the State the government disappeared from the field. Now when the time has come to award compensation to farmers the AAP government is indulging in politicising the issue of compensation”.
Badal said it was in this backdrop that he decided to go to the flood affected areas and reach out to the farmers. “I am thankful to the party rank and file which helped me in this initiative. We have provided thousands of liters of diesel and other essential material including iron meshes to the flood hit. Now we have started distributing maize silage and compressed hay at a cost of Rs 8 crore rupees. We have also planned to disburse certified seed to farmers in one lakh acres of land besides providing wheat to 50, 000 poor families”. He also disclosed that SAD youth workers had also taken on the responsibility of conducting defogging in all affected areas daily for a period of one month.
Asking the AAP government to step in, Mr Badal said the government should provide certified seed to farmers in two lakh acres of land besides ensuring DAP fertiliser free of cost in flooded areas.
Senior leaders Kanwarjit Singh Rosy Barkandi Tejinder Singh Middukhera, Harpreet Singh Kotbhai, including Manjinder Bittu, Preetinder Singh Sammewali, Akashdeep Singh Middukhera, Lappi Ennakhera, Navjinder Mann, Parminder Kolianwali, Honey Fattanwala accompanied the SAD president.