Shimla, July 8 (IANS) Eight days of natural calamity, which mainly hit Mandi district, have passed, but the Congress government is not concerned to restore essential services and reach out to the people in affected areas, Himachal Pradesh BJP President Rajeev Bindal said on Tuesday.

Bindal told the media here that the government could not restore roads, water and electricity supply to start rehabilitation in the calamity-affected areas. Heavy rains caused extensive damage in various areas of Mandi district, and more than 1,000 houses were damaged, out of which 300 to 500 houses were completely damaged and 500 houses were partially damaged, he said.

The BJP leader said more than 200 fields have been wiped out in the torrential rains that triggered flash floods on the night of June 30. “The problem is that the projects of the Jal Shakti Department have come to a standstill, and there is no drinking water, and the government has not made any alternative arrangement so far, which is unfortunate,” Bindal said.

“Most of the roads of Pandoh and Mandi are closed; the government has not made any effort to open them yet. This raises a question mark on the seriousness of the government. Also, we demand that the government should make permanent arrangements for the affected people who are living in camps,” the BJP leader said.

Bindal asked the Chief Minister to deploy maximum men and machinery to provide relief to the people and restore emergency services. “All the BJP leaders have been working seriously since the calamity. Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur, legislators Vinod Kumar and Deepraj Kapoor and three teams formed by the BJP are continuously working on the ground. If Jairam Thakur had not gone to Mandi district on the first day, the gravity of the disaster would not have come to light at the right time,” he claimed.

Bindal said the Chief Minister is constantly accusing the BJP and the opposition that “we are doing politics at the time of this tragedy. This allegation is wrong.” He said, “If the Chief Minister considers service as politics, then we will continue doing it. If the distribution of ration kits, and utensils, delivering blankets, meeting the affected and expressing condolences to them, going among them and sharing their grief is politics, then we will continue doing such politics”.

He added, “It would have been better if the Chief Minister and his leaders were also working among the people to share their grief.” Bindal demanded that land be provided for the rehabilitation of more than 500 people who had completely lost their homes and agricultural fields.

Monsoon rains in Himachal Pradesh have so far caused 80 deaths, including 52 from disasters like cloudbursts and landslides. Mandi and Kangra are the worst hit, where rescue operations are underway.

–IANS

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