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Journalism of Courage
‘All okay’: The only two words this official exchanged with her family during floods
“All okay” were the two words that Fatehgarh Sahib Deputy Commissioner Parneet Shergill and her family shared every two hours.
Shergill says, “I have a 15-year-old son at home in Patiala who was very worried. Although my family has seen me face numerous emergency situations in my 22 years of service, this was different. The unprecedented rainfall was something we had never experienced and as the rain intensified, so did their anxiety for my safety. The only option I had was to assure them that everything was all right even as I was standing in waist-deep water.”
Narrating how the area within a 6-km radius of her DC Office complex, including the surrounding villages, was the worst affected, she says that residential colonies, gurdwaras, and educational institutes were all flooded. The problem became acute when the main power grid at Bassi Pathana and Sirhind failed due to the rising water levels.
“My first priority was reaching out to people in immediate danger and evacuating them. Families were urged to move to safer locations, but while some agreed, many refused to leave. Later that night, I received frantic calls from students in hostels as the water levels continued to rise,” she recalls.
Panicked residents also reached out for assistance. “The primary objective was to rescue as many people as possible. Dealing with the phone calls and ensuring rescue teams reached the affected residents and college students proved most stressful and it was compounded by network and electricity issues. The fact that people relied on me so much put me in more pressure,” she says, adding that she will never forget those days.
For 7 days she was in field, her only source of strength: 3-yr-old daughter’s videos
The videos of her three-year-old daughter, sent by her parents, were Patiala Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney’s only source of strength during the seven days that she spent on the field assessing flood situation.
Sawhney, who was handling flood situation in Patiala, finally returned home after a week on Saturday and met her daughter. “Both mine and my daughter’s eyes welled up with tears. I would say those were not tears but sparkles of joy. She just rushed to hug me and I can’t forget that moment,” she says.
Sawhney faced arduous days and situations but she says that she could focus on the rescue operations as her parents supported her. “I asked my parents to send me videos and refrain from video calls as that would make my daughter long for me more. I spoke to her on phone, assuring her that I will be back soon,” she recalls.
Reflecting on the biggest challenge during the flood control operation, Sawhney says that most people didn’t want to leave their homes and evacuate. “Initially, people were hesitant to move, but panic set in when water levels rose. The number of SOS calls also increased due to power disruptions, causing distress among the people. Managing everything simultaneously – from calming people down to convincing them to leave their houses, and addressing distress situations was very challenging,” she adds.
Recalling one of her most terrifying experiences, DC Patiala shares, “We encountered numerous alarming situations but the moment when the water level of Badi river suddenly rose still gives me goosebumps. Despite starting rescue with tractors, we soon found ourselves in waist-deep water. Within minutes, our tractors became inoperable as the water reached nearly the upper half of our bodies. I felt as if I will drown.” Following the incident, the team swiftly deployed boats.
Giving due credit to her team for effective management, she acknowledges that that some villages near Ghaggar, and near Tangri/ Markanda in Doodhan are still in critical conditions. “Now we are working on restoring infrastructure, preventing waterborne diseases, and providing relief and rehabilitation to those who lost their homes,” she adds.
As she rescued others, flood waters entered her home: ‘daughters were inside, alone…’
When she was on the field rescuing stranded people, a phone call from her home delivered heart-wrenching news: water had entered her own house and her two daughters – aged 1.5 and 4.5 years – were all alone. Even as the news of dirty water entering her house sent shivers down her spine, Ropar Deputy Commissioner Preeti Yadav kept working tirelessly rescuing people. It wasn’t until three grueling days without sleep that she finally met her family.
Reflecting on the ordeal, Yadav elaborates that the days were long and exhausting. “I worked continuously for 72 hours without sleep, stayed in the field making frequent visits to the affected areas. Finding a washroom in the field was an additional challenge, not to mention the meals that were missed,” recalls Yadav, adding that her anxiety was unmatched when she got the call from home.
“I was worried and immediately called my husband to reach Ropar. I instructed them to lock half the house, cover areas with tarpaulin sheets, and keep me updated.”
Amid the trying times, a pat from her daughters became Yadav’s source of strength. “It was very difficult for me to stay away from my two daughters for three consecutive days. But when I finally reached home, my daughter said, ‘Mumma, we saw you rescuing people from water on the news’. Although they are too young to understand the concept of floods, it warmed my heart,” she says.
Recounting the first call she received, Yadav says, “On hearing about the incessant rains in Himachal Pradesh, I foresaw the situation we would face. I knew we needed to act swiftly to evacuate people and provide them with food, water, and medical aid. My first step was to call in the NDRF and Army personnel and ensuring their swift arrival. The scariest moment, however, for me was when the Siswan breach took place and the Sirhand canal started flooding. This could have resulted in downstream districts being submerged. I remember spending the entire night searching for escape routes and repairing the breach.”
There is another moment that continues to haunt her. “An unmanageable situation arose when eight people were drowning due to the sudden swelling of the Budki river. We were unable to contact the NDRF team so we started pulling these people to safety with the help of a rope. Immediately after the rescue, the water levels rose even higher, and any delay on our part would have cost lives,” she says.
‘Never saw such heavy rain in 10 years of my service’
From electrocution to missing cattle and vehicles, bridge collapses to houses inundated, Kanwardeep Kaur, Chandigarh SSP, received all kinds of calls the last weekend. “My four-year-old son was curious. He kept asking me what was happening outside. On the face of this uncertain scenario, the only solace was my mother’s words, ‘Sab theek ho jayega’ (Everything will be okay). While juggling hundreds of frantic phone calls, these words brought a small sense of peace.
She says accessibility was a significant challenge for the police force. “Most routes were damaged and submerged in water. We received various types of calls, including cases of electrocution, missing cattle and vehicles, collapsed bridges, and houses inundated and our staff coordinated with the respective departments. Around 400 traffic officials were deployed on the streets, along with my entire police station staff, who didn’t even have raincoats like the traffic officials,” she says, adding that she had to change her clothes frequently.
Kaur also found that several basements of police buildings and quarter guards were flooded, along with submerged areas in police lines. However, she directed her team to prioritise critical areas for assistance.
A critical moment that caught Kaur’s attention was when she read an alert stating that both floodgates of Sukhna had been opened, yet the water remained unmanageable. Adding to her already stressful situation, she received a call from home informing her that the roof of one floor in her house was leaking. “We had to move everything to another floor and it made me more anxious, especially with a young child at home,” she shares, adding that she has never witness such a situation in the 10 years of her service.
Juggling between personal and official calls, the SSP made sure to assure everyone that things would be okay.
After three intense days, the only thing that brought a smile to Kaur’s face was when her curious son finally understood what kept his mother away from him. “When the situation was under control, I showed him pictures of me helping people. He is a child, and I am not sure how much he understood but he hugged me tight and that made my day,” she adds.
‘Asked staff to bring son to me so that I could nurse him’
In the midst of a rescue operation, Deputy Commissioner Aashika Jain would take a quick five-minute break to rush to her car to her one-year-old toddler. There were also times when Jain would request her staff to bring her son to locations like Derabassi, where she led flood control operations.
“My son is just a year old and the rescue operation demanded my presence round-the-clock, it was very challenging. With her parents caring for her little one, they consistently reminded Jain through her staff to prioritise her safety. They never asked me when I will return and would just ask me to take care,” she shares. However, a frantic call from home at 2 am on Sunday informing her that their house has been inundated, left her very anxious.
When she received alerts on my phone about rising water levels at Kajauli and Sukhna, she woke up her SDMs and other officers, alerting them to the alarming situation. Recalling the havoc wreaked by the Sotal embankment washing away in 2019, Jain felt alarmed for Kharar and other affected areas. She immediately set off for the location.
“Getting there was a nightmare. I initially took the Kharar route, but the underpass was flooded. Then, I took the Wadala road and it took me 1.5 hours to reach the destination. As I got out of the vehicle, I met a sea of villagers who stopped us from entering. There was some misunderstanding but it was resolved, and they helped us strengthen the embankment. If timely action had not been taken, many areas would have been flooded,” she explains.
Her food was the least of her concerns, but she always packed 20 paranthas from home to ensure that her staff don’t go hungry.
Recounting another incident, Jain says, on Monday she got a call from the principal of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Rakoli, informing her that around 400 students were stranded and required immediate rescue and she ensured that the NDRF promptly conducted the rescue operation. “I consider myself lucky to have a hardworking team. Thanks to their immediate efforts, the lives of 50 villagers were saved from imminent danger,” she says.
Her car stalled, but not her determination
The moment when her official car got stuck in water and residents had to push it to get it out, will forever remain etched in Assistant Commissioner of Patiala Akshita Gupta’s memory.
Gupta was responsible for flood relief camps and rehabilitation work across the Patiala district. Gupta recounts, “I was visiting a relief camp, and the road leading to it was completely flooded. My driver and I had to make a decision whether to proceed or not. We could see people walking through water, which must have been around 2-2.5 feet deep. We decided to continue, determined not to stop our car. However, when only 50 metres was left, our car stopped. People standing on the other side came to our aid and pushed our car through that stretch. Even though I was scared, this incident didn’t deter me from doing my duty.”
A resident of Panchkula, Gupta says that she kept getting frantic calls from her parents. “My family is very supportive and always encourages me. Regardless of whatever happens, my mother’s words like ‘Abhi paani pi pehle’ (Have water first) and ‘Wear earrings, it will be nice’ will always stay with me,” she adds.
Gupta emphasises that as an under trainee IAS officer, this event has helped her learn how to respond to emergency situations and develop an empathetic character.
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