After Delhi, Punjab Govt Extends Holidays in Schools to July 16

Relief efforts continued at a rapid pace in the flood-affected regions of Punjab and Haryana on Thursday. The relentless rain has paralyzed normal life in the worst-hit areas. In consideration of student safety, the Punjab government extended the school holiday until July 16, after previously announcing holidays until July 13. Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains tweeted that all schools would remain closed until July 16. With improved weather conditions over the past three days, authorities in both states have intensified their relief operations.

On Thursday, officials reported that the water flow at Haryana's Hathnikund barrage in Yamunanagar district was 1.62 lakh cusecs at 10 am, a significant decrease from the discharge rate of approximately 3.21 lakh cusecs on Tuesday morning. Nevertheless, the overflowing floodwaters from the Yamuna river have submerged extensive agricultural land in Karnal and Panipat districts and have affected several villages. In light of the rising water levels in the Yamuna over the past three days, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, urging for a gradual release of water from the Hathnikund barrage. The Yamuna river has two major barrages upstream of Delhi — Dakpathar in Dehradun and Hathnikund in Yamunanagar. Since there are no dams on the river, most of the monsoon flow remains unused, leading to seasonal floods.

Haryana's Education Minister Kanwar Pal explained that Hathnikund is a barrage and not a reservoir capable of storing large volumes of water. He emphasized that water cannot be held beyond a certain permissible limit to avoid further damage. Meanwhile, the death toll due to rain-related incidents in Punjab and Haryana has risen to 21, including 10 deaths in Haryana, according to government data. Fourteen districts in Punjab and seven in Haryana have been affected by the floods. More than 14,000 people have been relocated to safer areas from waterlogged localities in several affected districts of Punjab.

Retired Lieutenant General H.S. Panag, former General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command, shared photos of his inundated farmhouse, 'Titar Lodge,' near Fatehgarh Sahib, which had been submerged for 48 hours since the evening of June 9. Salvage operations are underway, but it is expected to take two to three weeks to recover from the damage. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected districts to assess the situation. Khattar confirmed that ten people had lost their lives in rain-related incidents in the state. The heavily affected districts in Haryana include Ambala, Panchkula, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Yamunanagar, Panipat, and Kaithal. In Punjab, Patiala and Rupnagar are among the hardest-hit districts. The government has established relief shelters in various districts across both states, and numerous NGOs, locals, and religious organizations have joined hands to provide assistance to the affected population.