BAHAWALPUR: After a sudden rise in water level in the River Chenab, residents of several rural settlements of Ahmedpur East, had to move to safer places along with their belongings, including livestock, while standing crops over hundreds of acres were inundated in the riverine area.

According to officials, most of the affected people were encroachers who had illegally cultivated state land in the river bed and had settled there with their families.

According to reports reaching here, the affected areas include low-lying settlements of Daulatpur, Rathar Naharwali, Basti Sanjrani, Faridabad, Basti Chachar, Basti Billimar and Basti Jhabeal, where standing crops of cotton, rice, fodder on hundreds of acres were damaged by the river water.

As the river water entered these areas, the locals had to move to safer places along with their livestock.

According to the affected people, the river swelled because of influx of more water and continuing closure of the spillways of Panjnad Headworks, which was being rehabilitated by the provincial highways department.

According to irrigation department Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), Panjnad Headworks, Khalid Mehmood, presently there was no flood situation in any of the rivers, including Chenab.

He said that despite a ban, the local farmers cultivated crops illegally in the river’s pond area. When the water rises in the river in this part of the year, these crops were swept away, he added. He said this migration was an annual feature of the area.

REVENUE TARGET: The revenue target of Rs6,557 million for Bahawalpur had been achieved.

Commissioner Asif Iqbal Chaudhry, presiding over a video-link meeting of the three deputy commissioners and revenue officials of the division on Tuesday said the revenue targets included Rs3,369m under the stamp duty head, Rs387m in agriculture tax and Rs1,947m in the land transfer head in the division.

ARRESTED: Nowshehra Jadid police claim to have arrested an ice-cream vendor who had allegedly raped a seven-year-old three days ago.

The police on the complaint of the victim’s father, Fayyaz, had registered a case against the suspect, who had managed to flee the scene after committing the crime.

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2020