Kejriwal urges Centre for urgent assistance

Chandigarh: AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal visited flood-affected areas in Sultanpur Lodhi in Punjab’s Kapurthala district on Thursday and requested the BJP-led Centre to help the state in this hour of crisis.

Earlier in the day, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo called on Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann at his official residence in Chandigarh and inquired about his health. Mann, who is down with fever, could not accompany Kejriwal during his visit to the flood-hit areas.

Talking to reporters, Kejriwal highlighted the magnitude of the crisis and the Punjab government’s round-the-clock efforts for relief and rescue. He also appealed to the Centre for urgent assistance.

State minister Aman Arora and Rajya Sabha MP Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal accompanied the AAP supremo during his visit to the flood-affected areas.

Kejriwal said this year’s floods are among the worst in Punjab’s history, comparable only to the deluge of 1988.

Entire villages have been submerged, causing massive loss of homes, crops and infrastructure, he said.

The AAP chief expressed deep concern over the suffering of people and assured them that his party and the Punjab government are standing firmly with every affected family in this hour of crisis.

Highlighting the government’s on-ground efforts, he said, “The entire Punjab administration, from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann,

MLAs and all officers including DCs and SSPs, besides AAP workers are working tirelessly to rescue people and provide relief. No effort is being spared.”

Kejriwal noted that while some families are reluctant to leave their houses, others have been shifted to well-equipped relief camps, where the government has ensured adequate food, shelter and essential supplies.

He praised the courage and spirit of the state’s people, recalling how Punjab was always at the forefront whenever the country needed it, whether it was defending India’s borders or leading the Green Revolution.