Authorities use pumps to drain out water from flood-hit areas, distribute relief material in Punjab, Haryana

Chandigarh: Authorities deployed pumps to drain out water from flood-affected areas, and distributed dry ration and drinking water to stranded residents as relief operations gathered pace in Punjab and Haryana on Friday.

More than 19,000 people have been shifted to safety from waterlogged localities in various flood-hit districts of Punjab so far, while 3,674 have been evacuated in neighbouring Haryana, according to officials.

Overall, 14 districts have been affected in Punjab and 10 in Haryana. The two states were pummelled by heavy rains from Saturday to Monday.

So far, 27 people have died in rain-related incidents in the neighbouring states, with Haryana accounting for 16 deaths, according to government data.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann visited Ferozepur in Jalandhar to take stock of the situation, officials said.

He will also visit Lohian in Jalandhar and meet people who have been affected by the floods, they said.

The floodwaters receded in some areas, including Fatehgarh Sahib, they said.

However, several villages of the Moonak sub-division in Sangrur have been inundated as the Ghaggar river is in spate, they added.

In Ludhiana, polluted water of the Buddha nullah entered several colonies -- Tajpur Road, Dhoka Mohalla, Dharm Pura, Shiv Puri, Shivaji Nagar and Kashmir Nagar.

Municipal authorities said pumps are being used to drain out water from these colonies.

AAP MLA Madan Lal Bagga expressed hope that the situation would improve soon. Relief work is being undertaken in the affected areas by the concerned authorities, he said.

Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Arun Mitra expressed concern over the risk of spread of diseases in the flooded colonies.

"The pathetic condition puts residents of the affected colonies at high risk of diarrhoea, skin diseases and respiratory diseases," he said.

The Buddha nullah, which crosses Ludhiana city, carries industrial effluents and solid waste and domestic sewage.

After opposition parties in Punjab targeted the AAP government for its alleged lack of planning and preparation, Mann had on Thursday accused them of indulging in politics over a natural calamity.

He also said that Punjab would send to the Centre an estimate of its losses due to the floods but would not beg for a financial package.

In Haryana, 854 villages have been affected by the floods. While 126 houses have been fully damaged, 106 suffered partial damage, the officials said.

As many as 1,819 people are living in 12 relief camps set up in the state, they said.

The water flow rate in the Hathnikund barrage in Yamunanagar was 65,183 cusecs at 7 am on Friday and 69,281 cusecs at 10 am. The flow rate was significantly lower than 3.21 lakh cusecs on Tuesday morning, they added.

The rains have affected more than 1.24 lakh hectares of the crop area in the state.

Ambala, Fatehabad, Faridabad, Panchkula, Jhajjar, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat and Yamunanagar are among the worst-hit districts.

Haryana Assembly Speaker Gian Chand Gupta took stock of the situation in affected areas of Panchkula district.

At many places, NGOs, locals and religious bodies have come together to lend a helping hand to those affected.