Two days after a news report titled “Bathinda residents stare at breach as rodents weaken Sirhind Canal bank” appeared in The Tribune on Wednesday, the authorities concerned today started repairing the bank of the Bathinda Branch (a branch of the Sirhind Canal) opposite the Lake View VIP Guest House, where Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann stays during his visits to the city.
The report had highlighted that rats had severely damaged a stretch of the canal bank, raising fears of a possible breach.
Speaking to The Tribune today, Jagmeet Bhaker, Executive Engineer, Bathinda Branch of the Sirhind Canal, said, “We have lowered the water level in the canal and started the repair work on the damaged stretch. The work will be completed by tomorrow.”
He further said that the canal downstream supplies water to the Bathinda Rural, Gidderbaha, and Lambi Assembly segments. It also supplies water to two or three potable water schemes in Haryana. A visit to the site revealed that hundreds of rats had burrowed deep into the canal bank.
Furthermore, a portion of the retaining wall around the defunct thermal power plant’s lake there had also been damaged by rat activity.
The officials, however, blamed locals for feeding birds and animals at the site, which they said encouraged rats to dig burrows. Notably, public advisories have also been posted at the site, requesting people not to feed birds and animals.
Meanwhile, workers engaged in repairing the canal bank said they were placing bags filled with a mixture of cement and gravel along the damaged stretch to reinforce it.
“Besides manual labour, heavy machinery has also been pressed into service to repair the canal lining. The permanent lining will be carried out once the canal is shut during the off-season,” they said.
