40 Punjab villages still inundated; Modi to visit flood-hit state on September 9

Dubai: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit flood-hit Punjab on September 9 to review the devastation and relief operations across the state, where heavy rains have displaced lakhs and claimed dozens of lives.

He is also expected to travel to neighbouring Himachal Pradesh, which has suffered massive losses in the ongoing monsoon season.

Punjab minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond on Sunday confirmed that 40 villages remain inundated, with relief camps, food supplies, and medical support mobilised for both people and livestock. “About 23 camps are operating. We have arranged food and medical care for humans and animals,” he said.

As of Saturday, at least 46 people had died in Punjab’s floods, officials reported. Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said nearly 2,000 villages and over 400,000 people have been affected. “Twenty-four NDRF teams and two SDRF teams, supported by 144 boats and a state government helicopter, are on the ground,” he said, adding that Rs71 crore had been released for relief efforts.

Punjab BJP leaders said the Prime Minister’s visit to Gurdaspur will be an opportunity to meet victims and personally assess the ground situation. Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar said Modi is “deeply concerned” about the crisis. “He will personally assess the conditions to provide maximum assistance to Punjab,” Jakhar said.

BJP’s Punjab General Secretary Anil Sarin described the situation as “very worrying,” adding that lakhs have been rendered homeless and crops on thousands of acres destroyed. “Punjab has a special place in PM Modi’s heart. He will meet flood-affected families and farmers to share their sorrow and ensure full central support,” he said in a video message.

After his Punjab stop, Modi is expected to fly to Himachal Pradesh, where incessant rains have caused Rs3,959 crore in estimated losses and claimed 366 lives so far this year.

Two Union Home Ministry teams are in Chamba and Kullu districts to assess the damage, which includes blocked roads, snapped power lines, and disrupted water supply schemes.

The Congress government in Himachal has urged the Centre for a special relief package and even passed a resolution in the Assembly declaring the state a “national disaster-hit state.”

Officials said Punjab’s Fazilka, Gurdaspur, Ferozepur, Amritsar, and Hoshiarpur districts remain badly affected. With the water level at 270,000 cusecs on Sunday, authorities estimate it could take 8–10 days to drain water from Fazilka.

The Punjab Revenue Department said a total of 22,854 people have been rescued, the highest number from Gurdaspur (5,581), followed by Fazilka (4,202) and Ferozepur (3,888). Losses in the state are pegged at Rs13,289 crore, presented to two Central inter-ministerial teams currently assessing the situation.

Meanwhile, four BJP-ruled states — Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, and Assam — have rushed aid to Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.

Haryana CM Nayab Saini dispatched 25 trucks of relief material to Punjab and Himachal from Panchkula, saying, “No one has control over natural disasters, but extending a helping hand is true humanity.”

Delhi CM Rekha Gupta flagged off relief trucks and announced Rs5 crore in assistance for Punjab, while Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma contributed ₹5 crore to Himachal’s relief fund, expressing solidarity with the victims. Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav announced ₹5 crore plus relief material for Chhattisgarh.

The BJP said the coordinated support reflects the party’s resolve to stand with disaster-hit states. “The pain that the people of Punjab and Himachal have suffered is equally felt by us,” Saini said.

The floods have revived painful memories of 2023, when Himachal alone reported losses exceeding ₹10,000 crore. This year, the monsoon has continued relentlessly, affecting all 12 districts of Himachal and large swathes of Punjab, underscoring the mounting toll of extreme weather events on India’s Himalayan and northern states.

For Punjab, the tragedy comes amid strained finances, with the state now depending heavily on central relief. As PM Modi heads to Gurdaspur on Tuesday, expectations are high that his visit will unlock larger aid packages and speed up rehabilitation.

-- With IANS & ANI inputs