Punjab E News (Pawan Dhupar): The devastating floods in Punjab have disrupted public life, but the Bhagwant Mann government has set a new precedent by adopting transparency and digitalization to tackle this crisis. The government has created a special relief fund of ₹100 crores for over 2300 flood-affected villages. To maintain complete transparency in relief operations, funds have been directly allocated to every gram panchayat, enabling them to immediately start essential work in their villages such as road repairs, silt removal from drains, proper disposal of dead animals, and cleaning operations.
Complete progress records of these works are being maintained. Special meetings are also being held at the gram sabha level, where community members prioritize the work and review expenditure after completion. The village committees themselves send their reports to the state monitoring cell. This completely eliminates any possibility of corruption.
Making extensive use of digital technology, the state government has developed an online portal and mobile app where photos, videos, and expenditure details of relief operations are available for the general public. This gives every citizen of Punjab the assurance that their village’s relief funds are being directly utilized.
Additionally, mobile health units, digital fogging machines, and vending machines for animal vaccination have been used by the health and animal husbandry departments to provide rapid services. Through the mobile app, all information related to flood-affected areas is updated in real time.
The Punjab government has taken several special and effective steps to ensure transparency in flood relief distribution, some of which are as follows:
Special Girdawari Report: Technical teams are preparing girdawari reports within 30-40 days to assess the damage to crops, livestock, and houses of flood-affected farmers. These reports are completely truthful and impartial so that compensation reaches the right people.
Direct Monitoring and Video Conferencing: Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has been reviewing relief operations through video conferencing with DCs of all districts every week. This keeps every progress under observation and helps prevent delays or irregularities in work.
Direct Funding to Gram Panchayats: Over 2300 affected village gram panchayats have been directly given funds so they can quickly carry out the most essential repair and cleaning work at the local level.
Budget and Expenditure Transparency in Gram Sabha: Special meetings are held in every gram panchayat where expenditure, priorities, and work review is conducted. Photo reporting is done before and after every work, showing proper utilization of money.
Dedicated Monitoring Cell: A monitoring cell has been established at the state level that continuously monitors flood relief operations. This cell handles reporting, grievance redressal, and progress review.
Open Digital Portal and Mobile App: The Punjab government has launched a digital portal and mobile app where the general public can directly view the progress, expenditure, and photographs of relief operations. This has increased public trust and eliminated scope for corruption.
Strict Action Instructions: The Chief Minister has made it clear that if any irregularity or corruption is found in relief distribution, strict action will be taken against the concerned officials.
Participation of Voluntary and Social Organizations: Along with states, NGOs, youth organizations, and social institutions are also involved in relief operations, ensuring transparency and effective distribution of work.
Appointment of Nodal Officers: Nodal officers have been appointed in each district who take responsibility for relief material distribution, compensation payment, and repair work.
Online Complaint and Suggestion System: An online system is available for people to report any irregularity in relief distribution or file complaints, enabling quick investigation.
The government has also launched a new system for digital monitoring of water storage and drainage systems, which will be used in future heavy rains to issue alerts and provide immediate effect to rescue operations.These are all the concrete steps that the Mann government has taken in this flood-like situation, and additionally, the general public has also given full support to the government.
Youth organizations, NGOs, and local volunteers in villages have also become active participants in this campaign so that the pace of work continues and help reaches maximum people. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said, “This campaign is a big step towards putting political and social power in the hands of the people through transparency, accountability, and technology. Our government stands with every village, every family that has been affected by floods.”
This model shows that Punjab is not limited to just providing relief from the current floods, but is strongly prepared to deal with such disasters in the future. The Punjab government’s approach based on digital transparency and community participation will also prove to be a guiding principle for other states. The people of Punjab should have confidence that the Mann government is with them at every step and is committed to restoring normal life as soon as possible.
