‘Situation worrisome’: Sutlej river eroding 2 acres land per day; Ludhiana DC sends SOS to Army

Writing to the Army’s Western Command Headquarters, Jain said that there is continuous erosion of agricultural land outside the dhussi bundh (embankment) in Sasrali’s Mattewara zone because of the incessant flow of water in Sutlej River. “Due to this continuous erosion activity of the river, farmers are losing their precious land. We are trying all existing resources at our end. We request you to please urgently provide Army assistance and two columns of the Engineering Wing for technical support and to stop the continuous erosion of farm lands immediately,” he wrote.

Though the centrally located Ludhiana was not among the worst-hit districts in Punjab as the state faced its most devastating floods since 1988, residents of Sasrali Colony have been worried for nearly a month now as the river shifted its course, endangering acres of agricultural fields near the dhussi bundh.

Several factors have allegedly triggered the shift in the river’s course are allegations of rampant illegal mining near the riverbed, failure to de-silt the river for decades thus reducing its water carrying capacity, incessant monsoon rain among others.

Speaking to The Indian Express, DC Jain said that nearly 300 acres of farmland, including 38 acres “inside the bundh” and the rest “inside the riverbed”, have been eroded so far. Some farmers cultivate the land inside the riverbed too, which is their “privately owned land”.

“The erosion rate is roughly two acres per day. We have sought technical assistance from the Army. The river has changed its course this time. The Sutlej flows for nearly 110 km in Ludhiana district. Only Sasrali point is worrisome, the rest are fine as of now,” he said

Earlier, teams from the Army and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were deployed in Sasrali Colony to strengthen the dhussi bundh but that too was breached, following which a D-bundh was constructed to stop water from eroding the farm land. The situation was controlled temporarily, but the erosion continued.

“The Army team had left seeing that there was no danger to life, but now we have called them again. Farmers are losing land,” said an official.

Local Congress leader Manveer Dhaliwal said that the change in the river’s course is due to rampant illegal mining against which the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has failed to take any action. “The river has already taken one house and another is on the verge. Luckily, no life has been lost as of now but the river is inching closer to the village each day.”

Fatehgarh Sahib MP Dr Amar Singh, under whose seat the Sahnewal sub-division falls, has also blamed the ruling AAP for inaction on illegal sand mining on the banks of the Sutlej.