Jalandhar, Sept. 26 -- As the floodwaters receded in Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala district, help has started pouring in for the farmers of the 14 worst-affected villages in the mand (low-lying) areas in an effort to desilt fields of sand and other debris ahead of rabi sowing starting in November. As many as 75 tractors, mostly brought in by volunteers, are currently engaged in clearing sand from the fields in 14 villages in the mand (low-lying) areas. Among the worst-affected villages in the Sultanpur Lodhi region are Sangra, Mand Mubarakpur, Muhammadabad, Baupur Kadim, Baupur Jadid, Rampur Gura, Mand Bandu Jadid, Bhaini Karim Baksh, and Bhaini Bahadur. All the villages remained waterlogged for more than 40 days from August 10 onwards. The recent floods had affected 145 villages in Kapurthala district. As many as 5,728 people from the 14 worst-affected Mand villages were displaced. A preliminary report suggested crop loss on 43,426 acres of the Kapurthala district. The groups of hundreds of youth are arriving in Baupur Mand in convoys of 15-20 tractors, often carrying along tankers capable of storing 2,000 to 3,000 litres of diesel. "These young volunteers stay in the Mand area for three to four days, setting up temporary camps and spending their days removing sand from the field," said Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal. Seechewal added that Sukhwinder Singh Neki, sarpanch of Sidhwan village of Ludhiana, has contributed 2,300 litres of diesel for the desilting efforts. "Similarly, youths from Barnala have arrived with 15 tractors, rations and diesel worth Rs.50,000 have come in from Laxmangarh in Rajasthan, youths from Jalandhar provided 600 litres of diesel and 200 bundles of cattle feed and support has also poured in from villages like Bhuthgarh (Patiala), from Moga, Barnala, Kapurthala's Khiranwali, Jahangir, and Noorpur, Sangrur, Chaminada in Ludhiana, and many other parts of the country," he added....