Two days after a news report highlighted the risk of a breach due to rodent damage, authorities in Bathinda started repairing the bank of the Bathinda Branch of the Sirhind Canal on Friday. The report, titled “Bathinda residents stare at breach as rodents weaken Sirhind Canal bank,” was published in The Tribune on Wednesday.
Repair work underway
The damaged stretch is located opposite the Lake View VIP Guest House, where Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann stays during his visits to the city. Jagmeet Bhaker, Executive Engineer of the Bathinda Branch of the Sirhind Canal, told The Tribune, “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.”
A visit to the site revealed that hundreds of rats had burrowed deep into the canal bank. A portion of the retaining wall around the defunct thermal power plant’s lake there had also been damaged by rat activity.
Impact of the canal
Bhaker 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.
Cause and prevention
Officials blamed locals for feeding birds and animals at the site, which they said encouraged rats to dig burrows. Public advisories have been posted at the site, requesting people not to feed birds and animals.
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.
