CHANDIGARH, Sep 15: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the flood-hit areas in Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts of Punjab on Monday and interacted with those affected by the natural disaster.
After meeting the flood victims, he said “pain is clearly visible in their eyes, but their courage is unwavering”.
Meanwhile, Congress leaders alleged that Gandhi was stopped by the local police from visiting Toor, a border village across the Ravi river in Gurdaspur.
On the central relief package of Rs 1,600 crore for the state, the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha agreed with the state Congress leaders saying that it was far too less than what was needed.
His visit came nearly a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi conducted an aerial survey of the flood-ravaged areas of Punjab and reviewed the situation the state.
During his visit, Gandhi was accompanied by Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa, Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and other party leaders.
Upon his arrival, Gandhi was briefed by the party leaders about the extent of damage and devastation caused in Punjab due to the recent floods.
They also brought to his notice the alleged negligence of the state and central governments, which added to the devastation.
The leaders told him that timely action by the state government and the Centre could have prevented the damage by about 75 per cent.After arriving in Amritsar this morning, Gandhi straightway headed to Ghonewal village in Ajnala and met the flood-hit people to enquire about the damage.
Ghonewal village was among several areas in Ajnala which was badly hit by floodwaters. (PTI)
