Punjab Vidhan Sabha tables resolution condemning Centre for ‘meagre’ Rs 1,600 crore flood-relief package

The PMO also faced criticism for ‘not responding to the Punjab chief minister’s repeated request for a meeting’.

Written by Kanchan Vasdev

Chandigarh | September 26, 2025 03:44 PM IST

3 min read

punjab floods, punjab flood compensation,

Holding the BBMB responsible for the floods in Punjab, minister Barinder Goyal said that it was important that the management of BBMB be transferred to the state government. (AP file photo)

The Punjab Vidhan Sabha, convened to discuss the recent floods in the state, Friday tabled a resolution criticising the BJP-led Centre for announcing a ‘meagre’ Rs 1,600 crore flood-relief package for the state. The resolution also condemned the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for “not responding to the elected Chief Minister of Punjab’s repeated request for a meeting”.

Tabling a resolution on the first day of the two-day special session, Punjab Water Resources Minister Barinder Goyal demanded a financial package of Rs 20,000 crore. He said the prime minister should respect federalism in the country and treat all states equally.

“The PM announced a meagre amount of Rs 1,600 crore. Even after so many days of his visit, the money has not been credited in the state’s treasury,” the minister added.

Holding the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) responsible for the floods in Punjab, Goyal said that it was important that the management of BBMB be transferred to the state government.

The minister alleged that whenever he requested the release of more water from BBMB, the chairman would delay it by calling a meeting of all the states.

“For instance, we asked the BBMB to release water from Bhakra when the dam level was 1,660 feet, but they said they would release it only after it reached 1965 feet,” Goyal said.

He also alleged that the Ramsar side of the Beas River was declared a wildlife reserve, and added that “Central approval is required to extract even a spoonful of sand from the Beas. We cannot carry out de-silting or mining; it is beyond our jurisdiction.”

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He said that they saved the population alongside the Ghaggar River this time by strengthening the bund of the Ghaggar: “We worked on strengthening after the 2023 floods. This time, only 40 villages were affected, that too due to the Hansi-Butana siphon.”

The Punjab minister said the government had high hopes from the Centre in the hour of crisis, “but despite the floods ravaging the state on August 26, the prime minister did not even send a message of sympathy until September 9.”

The resolution said that Punjab has been ravaged by catastrophic floods, widely regarded as the worst and most destructive deluge since the 1988 floods, causing loss to over 20 lakh people, destroying crops on nearly 5 lakh acres, numerous losses to livestock, and irreparable damage to both private and public infrastructure.

It added that the Punjab Vidhan Sabha “condemns the lack of response and the failure of the BJP-led Union Government to sanction a special financial package commensurate with the scale of the worst floods faced by Punjab in decades.”

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