Barrage gate on Ravi collapses, Punjab suspends engineers

Government order says engineers failed to act on warning signs before the floods struck, putting at risk a vast population.

- TARUNI GANDHI

The Punjab government has suspended three engineers of the Water Resources Department after a gate at the Madhopur Headworks in Gurdaspur collapsed during the recent floods.

The suspension of the officers marks the first step in fixing responsibility for lapses that endangered thousands of people living downstream and disrupted the state's vital irrigation system.

In a notification issued on September 15, the principal secretary, Water Resources Department, ordered the suspension of executive engineer Nitin Sood, posted with the Gurdaspur Canal and Ground Water Division. Along with him, sub divisional officer Arun Kumar and junior engineer Sachin Thakur were also placed under suspension.

The order notes that the three officials failed to discharge their duties in maintaining the Madhopur Headworks and did not act on warning signs before the floods struck. Their lapses directly contributed to the collapse of the gate, which risked both public safety and agricultural livelihoods.

The government has instructed all three officers to report to the chief engineer headquarters in Chandigarh. A departmental inquiry has been initiated, and further disciplinary action will depend on its findings.

The Madhopur Headworks, located on the Ravi river, regulates water flow into the Upper Bari Doab Canal. Built over a century ago, the structure is central to Punjab's irrigation network. During the September floods, one of its gates gave way under immense water pressure.

On August 27, 2025, during heavy monsoon floods, at least two floodgates of the Madhopur barrage collapsed.