Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Punjab on September 9 (Tuesday) to take stock of the situation in the flood-affected state, BJP state unit chief Sunil Jakhar informed on Sunday.
He will visit Gurdaspur, the worst affected district of the state and will meet the flood-hit people and farmers directly to share their sorrow and assure them of every possible step to mitigate the losses incurred by them.
In a post on X, Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jhakar said, “Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is deeply concerned about the flood situation in Punjab and is closely monitoring it. He 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.”
“Earlier, Union Agriculture Minister Shri Shivraj Chauhan was sent to evaluate the situation. 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,” Jhakar further said in the post on X.
In a post on X, the Punjab BJP said, “Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji is coming to Gurdaspur, Punjab, on 9th September. He will meet directly with the flood-affected brothers-sisters and farmers to share their sorrow and take every possible step to help the victims.”
“This visit of the Prime Minister proves that the central BJP government always stands with the people of Punjab and will provide full support in this difficult time,” the Punjab BJP further said in the post on X.
Meanwhile, Punjab Rural Development Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond on Sunday said 40 villages in the state were affected by floods and relief operations were underway with rescue teams, administration and volunteers on the ground.
As of Saturday, 46 people have lost their lives due to floods in Punjab, according to the officials.
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said nearly 2,000 villages and over four lakh people have been affected.
He said 24 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and two teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on the ground, supported by 144 boats and a state government helicopter.
He added that the Revenue Department has released Rs 71 crore for relief efforts.
The state government has estimated a loss of Rs 13,289 crore due to the floods. The figure was presented by the government to members of two Central inter-ministerial teams that have been touring Punjab to assess the damage.
Punjab Revenue Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian said 1996 villages across 22 districts have been impacted, affecting a population of 387,013. A total of 22,854 people have been rescued. The highest number of evacuations has been carried out in Gurdaspur district (5,581), followed by Fazilka (4,202), Ferozepur (3,888), Amritsar (3,260), Hoshiarpur (1,616), Pathankot (1,139), and Kapurthala (1,428).