Chandigarh, Aug 26: Over 8,000 poultry birds and 125 bovines have been reported dead in the Punjab floods, the worst the state has seen in over 30 years, officials said on Monday.

The total loss in livestock has been pegged at Rs 91 lakh, they said.

The Animal Husbandry Department has sought a financial assistance of Rs 22.11 crore for medicines, feed, fodder and silage, and compensation to owners of animals killed in the deluge, the officials added.

Following heavy rains and release of water from the Bhakra Dam, the swollen river Sutlej and its tributaries flooded villages in several areas of Punjab, causing extensive damage to crops, especially paddy, and houses in low-lying areas.

In the worst flood in the state since 1988, people in several districts have lost their houses, belongings, and standing crops, though no loss of human life has been reported so far. The damage due to the deluge is estimated to be around Rs 1,700 crore.

“A total of 125 cattle, (cows, buffaloes), have died in the floods,” Punjab Animal Husbandry Department Director Inderjit Singh told PTI.

As many as 53 bovines were reported dead in Jalandhar district. Similarly, death of livestock was reported in Ferozepur, Ludhiana, Moga, Mohali and Rupnagar districts, Singh said.

Besides, 8,000 poultry birds died in Rupnagar, which is the first district downstream of the Bhakra Dam.

There were reports in Shahkot and Sultanpur Lodhi that cattle were not getting adequate feed because of the shortage of fodder.

The Punjab Animal Husbandry director said concentrated, dry and green fodder were being supplied with the assistance of district authorities and NGOs to villagers in flood-hit areas for their animals.

“Already 1,600 quintals of feed has been supplied and more fodder is also being provided,” he said.

Affected villagers, especially those ones living near the Sutlej river, said the fodder stored for the animals were damaged in the floods, creating a shortage of feed.

As many as 148 teams of veterinary staff have been sent to provide necessary treatment to around 61,000 cattle affected by recent floods in 225 villages of nine districts across the state, the official said.

Special veterinary teams are working round-the-clock in the villages of Jalandhar, Moga, Ludhiana, Ferozepur, SBS Nagar, Rupnagar, Fazilka, Tarn Taran and Kapurthala, he added.

The veterinary teams will also provide vaccination for contagious diseases like haemorrhagic septicaemia (HS) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), Singh said.

They have also been entrusted with the task of disposing of the carcasses of the dead animals, Singh said.

PTI