Tribune News Service
Deepkamal Kaur
Mukerian, August 18
In difficult times, when the houses and fields of the residents of about a dozen villagers from Mukerian are submerged in 10-15 feet of water for the last two days, Hoshiar Singh Rana of Sallowal village has opened the gates of his palatial house for all of them.
He has arranged several mattresses and pedestal fans so that anyone from the affected villages in his periphery, including Haler Janardhan, Simbli, Mehtabpur and Sanyal villages, can come to him and take shelter.
He has been arranging drinking water bottles and making arrangements for their meals for the past two days. “It is not just me but several other families of my village who have taken turns to prepare meals for the flood-hit villagers. They are bringing cooked food to our place and serving it to those who have taken shelter with us,” said Rana, adding that he was feeling privileged that the Almighty had given him a chance to serve his community.
Shamsher Singh, a farmer from the adjoining Harse Mansar village, has readied packs of dried ration and had gone to Simbli and Mehtabpur villages in a tractor to deliver the supplies. “Connectivity to both the villages by road had snapped on the morning of August 15 as the flood waters had reached there by then. It was today when the water receded by two feet that we could finally reach out to them via Sallowal road and know about their well-being,” he said.
Hoshiarpur ADC Rahul Chaba said, “Though the state government has adequate supplies of ration, water bottles and fodder for the affected villagers, several NGOs, social organisations and businessmen of Hoshiarpur are extending all-possible help to the affected families.”
