Breach in canal floods Karnal’s Ranwar village
KARNAL: Hundreds of Ranwar villagers faced a tough time on Sunday as they woke up to flooded houses and streets following a breach in nearby Avardhan canal.
The residents faced difficulty in protecting their belongings and cattle. They said the water entered the village around 4am. Even as they tried to plug the breach, they could not stop the flow of water.
They claimed that while some pigs died in a farm outside the village, water destroyed wheat fodder as well.
“Around 3.30am, my mother woke me up and I heard people screaming as they found their houses inundated,” said Balinder Singh, a local.
Nishant Kumar Yadav, deputy commissioner of Karnal, reached the village and issued directions to plug the breach.
He said, “The water entered only one village, but it later submerged some fields. It was, however, diverted to the Yamuna through a drain near the village.”
The DC said there wasn’t any report of loss of life and the cattle were safe.
The administration has pressed roadways buses and divers into service for evacuation, if required, he added.
DC Yadav said the flow of water was stopped at Yamunanagar, but it will take some hours to reduce its level. About the cause of breach, he said the reason could not be ascertained yet, but in the initial findings it was revealed that it was due to weak lining of the canal.
Local MLA Harvinder Kalyan also reached the village and assured all support to the villagers from the government. He said the water was being diverted to the empty fields and officials were working to seal the breach.
However, locals accused the government and administration of not taking the required measures to repair the banks of canal and claimed that the water was flowing above the canal capacity.