KHAIRA BEI (LUDHIANA): Mann has been piled against Nature in a relentless battle for supremacy on the banks of Satluj, 25 km from Ludhiana, for the last nine days. Thethug-of-warata 300footwide breach, from where the raging river threatens to flood to countryside continues and nearly half lakh population of 70 villages.
According to Inderjit Singh Walia, junior engineer at Punjab Irrigation department, it all started on July 10 when the Satluj shifted its course towards the left with the current hitting the bank on Khaira betside. The 280 feet long spur was eroded during three days and the current started hitting the bank from underneath.
The water has now gone beyond the breach to tough the ring bund constructed as a second defence. The saving grace is that the water level is lower than the ground level and the outflow of water is checked for the present. According to sarpanch of Khaira Bet Tehal Singh, residents of, at least, a dozen villages have been cooperating with enthusiasm by Pressing about 200 tractor-trailers and 500 men in service of the bund. They have been bringing each and sand from villages five to seven kilometers away, this is then put into bags for fortifying the bank and fill the breach, about 100dailywagers were filling these sacks, on July 17.
While the plugging operation is in progress, the police have made contingency plans for evacuating the people in case of emergency. An alarm has been sounded in all villages along the river, asking people to vacate if they so desired.
Sarpanch Tehal Singh observed that though the villagers were living inconstant fear and heard daily midnight announcements about a breach they were not ready to shift out till forced to at the 11th hour. However, some people staying in posh farm houses near the river bank were seen shifting their belongings to safer places.
This is only one of the four breaches which are haunting the residents in this district. Another breach took place near Machhiwara at Purji number 73. An 800 feet wide breach at Madheral in Jagraon subdivision, took place on Thursday.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 23, 1993
