Farmers stand outside the DC office after submitting a memorandum in Bathinda on Tuesday. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, March 8

About 18 villages here today heaved a sigh of relief after getting an assurance from the Army that it would remove a net from the Bathinda distributary of the Sirhind canal that passes through the Bathinda cantonment.Residents of villages were at loggerheads with the Army in the cantonment that had placed the net in the Bathinda distributary of the Sirhind canal.Panchayats of villages, including Gehri Buttar, Jodhpur Romana, Gehri Bhagi, Mehta, Shergarh, Bhagwangarh, Gurusar Sainewala, Phullomitthi, Sangat Kalan, Jassi Bagh Wali, Kishanpura, Naruana, Jai Singh Wala, Baho Sivian and Meeya today gathered here and approached the Bathinda Deputy Commissioner for the second time to get the issue sorted out.Hamir Singh, sarpanch, Jai Singhwala village, said: “The villages at the tail end, including Jai Singh Wala, Phullow Mithi, Sangat, were facing too much issues as there was no water for irrigation. Shortage of drinking water was also being faced by residents. We have earlier approached the executive engineer but to no avail. However, today the DC had assured to address our grievance.”Executive Engineer (Irrigation) Upkaran Singh said: “Farmers approached us two months ago and we had written a number of times to the Army and had even held meetings with them in this regard but today with the intervention of the DC, the matter has sorted out.”After the Pathankot terror attack, the Army in the Bathinda cantonment put up the net in Bathinda distributary, which used to get blocked after a few hours following waste and weeds gathering around the net. The cleaning of the Sirhind canal is not being done by the Irrigation Department due to lack of funds. However on Tuesday, Bathinda Deputy Commissioner Basant Garg met the GoC, Army Sub Area, Major General Jaggi, who assured to remove the net from the distributary.“I met Maj Gen Jaggi today and discussed the matter. The flow of water was halted due to the waste collected around the net and residents faced problems due to the same. However, Army officials had assured us to remove the net from the canal,” the DC said.