In Punjab, seven districts of the state have been put on high alert due to flooding in many villages there. The swollen Beas and Raavi rivers due to incessant rain for the last over 36 hours in many parts of Punjab and down flow of rainy water from Himachal Pradesh have caused flooding that has put normal life out of gear. Punjab Water Resources Minister, Barinder Kumar Goyal, has informed that Ferozepur, Fazilka, Tarn Taran, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Pathankot have been put on high alert due to the prevailing situation. Our Jalandhar correspondent reports that the Army, BSF, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and SDRF are rescuing the stranded villagers in Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala. Shelter homes with all the required facilities, including a medical team, have also been set up near the affected areas, both for people and the cattle. The forced release of surplus water from Bhakhra, Ranjit Sagar Dam, and Hussaniwala headworks to avoid any damage to these water reservoirs is also aggravating the flood problem in the state. Meanwhile, many cabinet ministers and MLAs are visiting flood-affected areas to take stock of the situation and take immediate action to help people.