The Punjab government today dispatched several truckloads of 1 lakh packets of relief material to flood-hit people in Kerala state from the city. The trucks carrying relief material were flagged off by Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu and Member of Parliament Ravneet Singh Bittu from Guru Nanak Stadium, here today.While providing information, Bharat Bhushan Ashu and Ravneet Singh Bittu said that the relief material dispatched today comprises of one lakh packets that consist of sugar, tea, rusk, biscuits, powdered milk, water bottles etc. They informed that to ensure that the relief material reaches Kerala soon, it has been sent by air from Halwara Air Force Station.
They stated that the Punjab government is standing rock solid with the people of Kerala in this hour of crisis. They said that today, the relief material is being sent from Ludhiana and in the coming days, it would be dispatched from other districts as well.It is pertinent to mention that to ensure that Punjab government contributes in flood relief, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had announced a grant of Rs 10 crore, out of which Rs 5 crore would be deposited in Chief Minister Relief Fund and relief material worth Rs 5 crore would be sent.Prominent among those present on the occasion included MLAs Mr Surinder Dawar and Mr Sanjay Talwar, Ludhiana Mayor Mr Balkar Singh Sandhu, Deputy Commissioner Mr Pardeep Kumar Agrawal, ADC Khanna Mr Ajay Sood, ADC (General) Mr Iqbal Singh Sandhu, Councillor Mr Hararandeep Singh Vaid, all SDMs and other officials from the District Administration.