Bajwa flays AAP for not declaring Punjab a flood-hit state

Punjab’s Leader of the Opposition (LoP), Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday rebuked the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government for its apathy to declare the state as flood-hit despite the fact the state had incurred losses of thousands of crores of rupees due to torrential downpours in the region that caused breaches in Ghaggar and Sutlej rivers. “Due to such an indifferent attitude of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government, the state has been unable to move the case further for financial assistance. The fund-starved state – Punjab has already been struggling hard to get its routine jobs done. Taking the deteriorated financial situation into consideration, Punjab needs financial assistance from the Union Government. Instead of getting the photo shoot done in the mud, CM Mann must speed up the evaluation work so that the relief package could be announced for the victims, who are eagerly waiting for help”, Bajwa said.
Senior Congress Leader, Bajwa said that the Punjab Congress had already taken up the matter with the Governor of Punjab and sought Rs 10,000 crore in financial assistance from the Union Government after the 19 districts of Punjab were shaken by the flood.
Citing media reports, the opposition leader said that the neighbouring state of Haryana had already declared 12 districts as flood-hit and also announced Rs 15,000 per acre for completely flood-damaged crops. Farmers in the 19 flood-affected districts in Punjab have lost their crops completely, and the AAP government has yet to announce a relief package for them. “After the water level rose again on Saturday night in Jalandhar villages, the residents of several villages were forced to take shelters near the Dhusi Bandh. The AAP government has again remained useless to provide them with a safer place to spend nights in such a difficult time”, said Bajwa. Bajwa reiterated that the flood caused massive devastation only because of the inefficiencies and ill-preparation of the AAP government in the state.
A fresh example of AAP’s inability can be gauged from the fact that it could not even provide the volunteers with the fuel to carry on with work to build embankments. Even though the AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Balbir Singh Seechewal had submitted the written request for the requirement of 2000 little diesel. “It is the individual volunteers and members of some organisations that have been working selflessly to plug breaches and distribute aid to the people of flood-affected areas. However, the AAP government has even failed to acknowledge their services, and at some places, the government has been stopping individual volunteers to distribute aid including water bottles and bread”, LoP added.