Punjab floods: The district administration of Amritsar announced on Sunday that schools will be closed on September 8 amid floods in the state. They will reopen on Tuesday, except for schools in Ajnala-1, Ajnala-2, Chogawan-1 and Chogawan-2.
“All schools in Amritsar will remain closed on 8th Sept. From 9th Sept, they will reopen (except Ajnala-1, Ajnala-2, Chogawan-1, Chogawan-2). Reopening allowed only after cleaning, sanitization, safety checks, and submission of a safety certificate,” Sakshi Sawhney, Deputy Commissioner Amritsar said.
Recent heavy rains in Punjab have worsened the flooding situation. Officials said that the floods in Punjab have resulted in 46 deaths so far and have damaged crops across 175,000 hectares of farmland.
PM Modi to visit on September 9
BJP state unit chief Sunil Jakhar stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Punjab on September 9 to assess the flood situation. “He (Modi) is visiting Punjab on September 9 to personally assess the local conditions and understand the ground realities to provide maximum assistance to the people of Punjab,” Jakhar mentioned on X.
He added, “Two central government teams, which visited to assess the damage caused by the floods in Punjab, are set to submit their reports to the central government after their tour. The government of India stands firmly with the people of Punjab.”
Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on September 4 visited Punjab to review the situation in the state. Chouhan checked the extent of crop damage, describing it a situation of ‘jal pralai (deluge)’. He guaranteed the farmers that the government would do everything possible to help them overcome this crisis. The minister visited the flood affected areas in Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Kapurthala districts.
The swollen Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi rivers, along with seasonal streams, have caused widespread flooding in Punjab after heavy rainfall in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.