Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel flags off special train with food and medicines to Punjab

Punjab has been devastated by rain and flooding this year, with 1,600 villages being washed away. As part of humanitarian aid, Gujarat government is sending a train with food, medicines and other items to the victims of the tragedy. Through the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund, Gujarat is also providing financial assistance of ₹5 crore each to Punjab and Chattisgarh.

On Thursday, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel flagged off a special relief train from Gandhinagar Railway Station. 

The consignment included 400 tonnes of food items such as flour, onions, potatoes, rice, edible oil, sugar, and milk powder, along with 10,000 tarpaulins (waterproof sheets), 10,000 mosquito nets, 10,000 bedsheets, and 70 tonnes of medicines.

Earlier, ₹5 crore each had already been sent by Gujarat to Punjab and Chhattisgarh as immediate financial assistance.

Government Health Minister Rushikesh Patel, briefing the media, stated that the relief train to Punjab comprised 22 wagons loaded with essentials ranging from wheat to clothes. In addition, about 8,000 relief kits have been dispatched for flood-hit areas of Chhattisgarh.

He further added that CM Bhupendra Patel will also visit rain-affected areas of Banaskantha district along with Speaker Shankar Chaudhary and other in-charge ministers to review the district administration’s relief measures and provide necessary guidance.