The floods in Punjab have brought back the horrific memories of the 1988 — when the raging Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers turned into ‘water of sorrows’ and claimed over 500 lives — triggering the fear of a replay.
The trail of devastation in at least twelve districts covered by these rivers — Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Fazilka, Jalandhar and Rupnagar (Ropar) are the worst-hit districts — remained massive, with people struggling to rebuild their lives.
Multiple studies on the flood management in Punjab over years point out that floods are a natural disaster caused by overflowing rivers during monsoons.
But what been equally emphasised are human factors — poor management and lack of cleanliness of drains, canals and choe, choked natural waterways, weak and poorly maintained dhussi bandhs, lack of green cover, illegal mining, and deforestation, illegal and mindless constructions in floodplains and riverbanks— have maximised the destruction brought in by floods.
Experts view the climate change phenomenon resulting in erratic and uneven rainfall as another human factor that has worsened the flood situation in both India and Pakistan in recent years.
What has also added to Punjab’s woes is the failure of successive governments to desilt its rivers which has reduced their water carrying capacity over the years.
Why does 1988 continue to haunt?
According to a report published by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Pune, the 1988 floods in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, and in states such as Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, etc., were among the “four most disastrous weather events” that year, with three others being cyclonic storm in West Bengal, severe heatwave over Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and heavy snowfall over Jammu & Kashmir.
The 1988 floods claimed more than 1,400 lives in the north, including at least 685 in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal. In Punjab alone, 535 people died as per reports. But according to the Punjab government, 383 died and 62 were missing.
According to the IMD report, while the incessant rains in Punjab that year had started in March, the worst came in September when the three overflowing rivers, Sutlej, Ravi and Beas, wreaked havoc. From Gurdaspur to Ludhiana, Jalandhar to Sangrur, almost the entire Punjab was flooded.
On March 11, 1988, flash floods in the Ravi hit Gurdaspur district, killing one person and inundating 40 villages, which remained cut off for three days. From July 3 to 7, heavy rains in Patiala claimed three lives and submerged one-third of the city, 12 buildings collapsed, and over 20,000 people were rendered homeless. In Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Ropar, canal links were washed away at several places.
What has also added to Punjab’s woes is the failure of successive governments to desilt its rivers which has reduced their water carrying capacity over the years.
The worst, however, started in the second week of July when the overflowing Sutlej and Ravi inundated Amritsar, Bathinda, Gurdaspur, Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Kapurthala and Sangrur. At least 38 people died, 208 cattle perished, crops were destroyed in 200 villages, and 8,900 houses were destroyed.
From September 4 to October 2, the three rivers overflowed like never before, claiming 57 more lives across Punjab, leaving 2 lakh people marooned in 1,483 villages and destroying crops worth crores of rupees in Amritsar, Bathinda, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Patiala and Ropar. At least 74,000 tonnes of foodgrain were also destroyed in mandis, according to the IMD document.
However, the worst happened in September last week when the floodgates of Bhakra and Pong dams were opened after unprecedented rainfall in catchment areas in just three days from September 23 to 26.
Claiming that the floodgates of both dams were opened to release lakhs of cusecs of water as a “conspiracy to finish Punjab”, militants had assassinated then BBMB chairman Major General BN Kumar in November 1988.
1993 floods
Five years later, in 1993, Punjab again faced devastating floods, claiming over 300 lives and 6,200 cattle perishing. The worst affected were Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Ludhiana, Patiala, Fatehgarh Sahib, Hoshiarpur, Ferozepur, and Sangrur, among others.
Breaches caused 1993 floods: PRSC study
A comparative study of 1988 and 1993 floods conducted by the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre (PRSC) in Ludhiana, using images from space technology, suggested that “in 1988, the flooding was mainly due to overflowing of rivers, whereas in 1993, it was caused by breaches in rivers and canals’ embankments”.
According to the study, almost 18 per cent of Punjab was flooded in 1988, while in 1993, at least 19.4 per cent area was flooded.
The PRSC study highlighted “some human causes leading to flooding” in Punjab, including: poor maintenance of dhussi bandhs and embankments on the rivers resulted in several breaches and weak and vulnerable patches, lack of maintenance of canals and choe banks resulted in breaches, and an inadequate drainage system designed to pass only a portion of high flood discharge, among others.
The study concluded: “Flood disasters could be greatly reduced if managed properly and preventive measures are adopted beforehand.” It added: “The natural drainage of the state has been partially disrupted with the laying of canals, construction of railway tracks, roads and cultivation on natural watercourses which need to be restored.”
Five years later, in 1993, Punjab again faced devastating floods, claiming over 300 lives and 6,200 cattle perishing.
PAU study: climate change a major cause for 2023 floods
The 2023 floods in Punjab were induced by climate change, which led to incessant and uneven rainfall, said the study “Punjab Floods 2023: Causes, Impacts and Learnings” by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) in Ludhiana.
“Climate change-induced climatic extremes are becoming frequent with the passage of time. The incessant rainfall in Himachal from July 7-11, 2023, was 436% above the normal, and caused heavy flooding in the downstream tracts of Punjab. The overflowing water entered Punjab through the Beas, Ghaggar and Sutlej. Nearly 2.21 lakh hectares of cropped area, mainly under paddy, got damaged,” it said.
Floodplains encroached, weak bandhs, unclean drains: Lapses all the way
A study “Punjab Floods: Some Lessons Learnt for Future Management” by Sucha Singh, assistant professor, geography, Panjab University, Chandigarh, conducted following the 2013 flooding, saysa: “Despite master plans on disaster management, especially relating to flood management in almost all districts of Punjab, the state failed to minimise the flood induced damage to thousands of acres of cropped area as well as the loss of settlement area.”
According to the study, the major reasons included breaching of temporary embankments along rivers and increasing encroachments on the floodplains of the rivers.
“The construction, strengthening and maintenance of embankments on Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers and on canal drains were not carried out properly due to some financial constraints and less political support from the concerned ministers and officials…” said the study.
Another study titled “Temporal analysis of floods in Punjab, India 1990 to 2010,” said that “floods are a major natural phenomenon” and Punjab witnessed “heavy rain in the catchment area of the rivers”, but flooding also happened due to “mismanagement”.
Major causes of flood in the state as per the study were: the tributaries were not cleaned, water overflowed and breached embankments, non-strengthening of the river bandhs, farmer made relief cuts in canal at many locations etc.
Dr Gurdev Singh Hira, retired additional director research, PAU, with specialisation in water and soil sciences, said: “Floods are not man-made, but the damage is being aggravated due to man’s actions and inactions. The concretisation and deforestation in Himachal Pradesh are a major reason for such water disasters. Climate change is changing rain patterns in the subcontinent, and Punjab on both sides of the border is the most vulnerable, being the land of five rivers.”
Reducing heat exposure in slums, improving coastal flood resilience or enabling farmers to shift cropping cycles — these are tangible outcomes that can accommodate diverse methods. 
What has also added to Punjab’s woes is the failure of successive governments to desilt its rivers which has reduced their water carrying capacity over the years.
Five years later, in 1993, Punjab again faced devastating floods, claiming over 300 lives and 6,200 cattle perishing.
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