Rahul visits flood-hit areas in Amritsar, to meet affected people in Gurdaspur too

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday (September 15) visited the flood-hit areas of Amritsar and interacted with those affected by nature’s fury.

He was accompanied by Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla, and other party leaders.

Also read: Punjab floods damaged health infra worth Rs 780 crore: Minister

Rahul in Ghonewal

After arriving in Amritsar, he headed to Ghonewal village in Amritsar’s Ajnala and met the flood-hit people to inquire about the damage.

Ghonewal village was among several areas in Ajnala which were badly hit by floodwaters.

Rahul sat among some flood-affected people and interacted with them.

After visiting Ghonewal village, he is scheduled to pay obeisance at the historic gurdwara Baba Budha Sahib in Ramdas area of Amritsar.

The former Congress president is also scheduled to visit flood-hit areas of Gurdaspur district.

Also read: Punjab seeks Rs 20,000 crore flood relief package ahead of PM Modi's visit

How Punjab was flooded

Punjab faced one of its worst flood disasters in decades. The floods were a result of swollen Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi rivers along with seasonal rivulets caused by heavy rainfall in their catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

Besides, heavy rains in Punjab and the release of water from barrages also intensified the floods.

The death toll because of the floods presently stands at 56 while crops on 1.98 lakh hectares were damaged.

Also read: Punjab floods: A natural disaster or man-made tragedy?

Modi’s assurance

On September 9, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the flood situation and damage in Punjab after conducting an aerial survey of the flood-ravaged areas during his visit.

He announced financial assistance of Rs 1,600 crore for the flood-hit state in addition to the Rs 12,000 crore already in the state’s kitty.

Earlier, Union ministers, including Shivraj Singh Chouhan, L Murugan and BL Verma, visited the flood-affected areas to take stock of the situation.

(With agency inputs)