Patiala, July 12 -- Panic gripped villages along the Ghaggar river in Patiala district's Ghanaur block on Saturday after the river swelled close to the danger mark of 16 feet, inundating vast stretches of paddy fields and reviving memories of the devastating floods that ravaged the region last year. The overflowing river entered agricultural fields in Chamaru, Raipur, Nanheri, Kami Kalan, Untsar and several adjoining villages, damaging standing paddy crop and leaving farmers worried over heavy losses. While floodwater has not entered most residential areas, residents remained on the edge as the river continued to flow in full spate through the day. Many villagers recalled last year's floods when the Ghaggar breached embankments at several locations, inundated hundreds of villages across Patiala and neighbouring districts, destroyed crops, damaged roads and forced thousands of people to evacuate. Patiala deputy commissioner Dr Himanshu Aggarwal said the administration was closely monitoring the situation and that the impact was limited. "The water entered only Kami Kalan and Untsar villages, and the water level has started receding. The situation is expected to return to normal. The district administration remains on alert and is continuously monitoring vulnerable locations," he said. Officials said teams from the district administration and drainage department remained deployed along vulnerable stretches of the river to keep a close watch on embankments and water levels. The Ghaggar, a seasonal river originating in the Shivalik hills of Himachal Pradesh, receives run-off from several seasonal rivulets flowing through Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and parts of Punjab before entering Patiala district. During periods of intense monsoon rainfall in its upper catchment, the river often swells rapidly, leading to flash floods in low-lying areas despite little or no rainfall locally. Officials fear that any fresh surge in upstream discharge could once again put vulnerable villages along the Ghaggar on alert, particularly in low-lying areas that remain susceptible to flooding during the monsoon....