Monsoon leads to crop loss in Punjab, Haryana
On the political front, chargesheet was filed against Nirmal Singh Kahlo and few other ministers for criminal conspiracy, corruption, cheating and forgery.
Even GMADA's grand Aerocity project landed in trouble, as a case was filed against the project by an advocate alleging that the project did not seek an environmental clearance.
Heavy floods in Punjab and Haryana
As the two states were hit by floods, the worst affected areas in Haryana were Ambala, Kurukshetra and Kaithal. In Punjab, the areas were Pataila and Sangrur. Heavy floods in these regions led to death of nearly 20 people.
Even the trains services from Delhi-Ambala and Ambala-Chandigarh were canceled due to water-logging on the railway tracks at Ambala Cantt.
The bus services from Chandigarh-Delhi were also canceled. Further, delays in airlines added woes to the people.
The services that were halted resumed Saturday after clearance of tracks.
Though water-logging problems were faced in the cities too, the main sufferers were the villagers, who are still facing the crisis, specially after the debacle caused by flood.
Breaches lead to huge loss
The breaches in the Ghaggar river has come as a shock to the residents of the two states.
The flood crisis deepened Saturday when a fresh breach took place in Ghaggar near Punjab's Sangrur and Haryana's Fatehabad district.
The Haryana government declared a loss of Rs 1,000 crore, where as according to a preliminary assessment report by Punjab, Rs 300 crore loss has been penned down due to loss of infrastructure and crops.
The rescue operations have been undertaken by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in two states as many villages are still sub-merged under water.
Villagers of the flood affected areas blamed the government for delay in rescue operations as the deteriorating conditions have deprived them of basic amenities like water, food, electricity, etc.
Over 2 lakh acres of Paddy crops have been destroyed in Punjab and Haryana. Further, the scarcity of food items like fruits, vegetables, fuel, etc. surged prices. This in turn affected the common man.
Reviewing the flood situations, Punjab Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to deploy a central team to assess the situation.
Chargesheet filed against ministers
A chargesheet was filed by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the Punjab legislative assembly speaker, former state minister for Rural Development and Panchayats, Nirmal Singh Kahlo, and 14 other ministers for alleged criminal conspiracy, corruption, cheating and forgery.
The chargesheet, prepared by CBI on July 9, claimed their suspected involvement in appointing 909 panchayat secretaries from year 1997 to 2002, when Shiromani Akali Dal was in power.
Kahlo and other ministers were charged under Sections 120-B criminal conspiracy, 465, 468 and 471, all three dealing with acts of forgery, and Section 201, signifying removal of evidence.
Apart from Kahlo, other accused ministers are Mandeep Singh, IAS and director, Transport, Punjab, J S Kesar, IAS (Retired), the then financial commissioner, Department of Rural Development and Panchayats, and Vikas Sharma, then private secretary (Retired) to the Minister, PS Sodhi, the then deputy CEO, Sangrur.
GMADA's Aerocity project in trouble
Spread in the vicinity of Mohali’s sector 66-A and Chhat village up to National Highway-64 in Zirakpur, lies GMADA's much-hyped Aerocity project.
Embarked by GMADA, Aerocity is situated near the upcoming international airport of Mohali.
A plea was filed against Aerocity project by a practicing advocate of SAS Nagar, Mohali, alleging that the project did not seek permission from the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
The Plaintiff's plea was confuted by the Punjab and Haryana Court, stating that the plantiff needs to approach the appropriate authority dealing with the environmental issues.
GMADA's Aerocity project will hold its draw of lots in first week of August and money of unsuccessful applicants will be refunded in October.
