July 16, 2022
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Monsoon fury batters Gujarat, southern states; floodwaters recede in Assam | Top points

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The monsoon season is wreaking havoc across several states in the country, with thousands of people shifted to relief camps as incessant rain and rising rivers inundated entire villages.

Gujarat, battered by a deluge over the past week, heavy rains continued to lash the southern parts of the state and Saurashtra. Navsari district continues to remain the worst-hit; rescue personnel raced against time to evacuate stranded civilians. In many places, people had to wade through knee-deep to reach safety.

Parts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana continued to reel under monsoon fury with the Godavari river flowing above the danger mark and several villages remaining marooned and cut-off from the main land.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy to very heavy rains in the state over the next couple of days.

GUJARAT

There appears to be no immediate respite in sight as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted “heavy to very heavy rainfall” at some places in south Gujarat and Saurashtra on Saturday.

It has also warned that “extremely heavy rainfall” may occur at isolated places in Navsari and Dang districts of south Gujarat and at some places in Saurashtra region, mainly Amreli, Junagadh, Bhavnagar and Gir Somnath today.

In more alarming news, the water level at the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada river is approaching the danger mark. Due to the incessant rains, 35 reservoirs in the state are on high alert, 17 are on alert while 14 dams are at the warning level.

As of Friday, six talukas in the state received over 200 mm rainfall in 24 hours ending 6 am. Considerable rainfall was recorded between 6 am and 10 am on Friday in Valsad and Navsari districts of south Gujarat and Gir Somnath district of Saurashtra region, while Kaprada taluka of Valsad recorded 253 mm downpour.

Five teams of NDRF arrived from Bhubaneswar to Surat Airport; Two teams to Navsari, one team to Valsad, two teams at Surat as standby and precautionary deployment.

Since July 7, 43 persons have lost their lives in various rain-related incidents in the state.

READ | India Today joins efforts to rescue animals trapped at shelter home in Gujarat

ANDHRA PRADESH

The in-spate Godavari river flooded 628 villages spread over 44 mandals in six districts its course, with State Disaster Management Authority warning that the flood flow could further rise by Saturday.

The SDMA said 62,337 people from hundreds of flood-hit villages in four districts of Andhra Pradesh were shifted to 220 relief camps. In Konaseema districts, authorities faced a tough time as people in the lanka villages (island villages along the Godavari’s course) refused to be evacuated to safety even as their habitations remained inundated.

Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy undertook an aerial survey of the flood-hit areas on Friday afternoon and gave directions to ensure no loss of life takes place in a review meeting with top officials.

TELANGANA

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Friday instructed officials to keep NDRF personnel, rescue teams and helicopters in readiness to carry out public protection measures in the low-lying areas in Bhadrachalam, flooded by the swollen Godavari.

An official in Bhadrachalam told PTI that several low-lying villages along the river have been evacuated and people in some of the colonies in the temple town have also been shifted as a precautionary measure.

ODISHA

Parts of Malkangiri district in Odisha are reeling under floods as backwaters from river Godavari in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh inundated villages and fields. Authorities swung into action, evacuating people in low-lying areas to relief camps .

An official report said at least three villages — Binayakpur, Alama and Peta — have been completed inundated in the flood, with locals there wading through the waters to reach safety.

Meanwhile, the Met office has issued an orange alert for heavy to very heavy showers on Saturday at a few places in the districts of Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Boudh, Bolangir, Bargarh, Sambalpur and Angul. It may trigger landslides or mudslides in vulnerable areas, according to the weather office.

The IMD has given a yellow warning of heavy rainfall in Khurda, Puri and Cuttack districts on Saturday.

KARNATAKA

Due to the heavy downpour, authorities in Karnataka’s Belagavi district have announced two days holiday for schools and colleges on Friday and Saturday in Belagavi city, Belagavi taluk and Khanapur taluk. Many rivers and rivulets are in spate, submerging multiple bridges and culverts.

An official statement said Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has ordered release of Rs 500 crore to take up infrastructure restoration works in the flood affected districts of the state.

Incessant rains over the last few days have left roads, bridges, electric poles, schools and primary health centres damaged, an official statement said, adding that the CM instructed officials to focus on restoration of infrastructure and civic amenities.

ASSAM

The flood situation in Assam further improved as water levels in all the rivers were receding and none were flowing above the danger mark. However, one more person died in Cachar on Friday, taking the death toll due to floods and landslides to 194.

At least 2,10,746 people continue to suffer from the deluge, with Cachar district being the worst-hit. A total of 799 villages in eight revenue circles of six districts are still under water, while more than 10,000 people are taking shelter in 45 relief camps.

MAHARASHTRA

The administration in Maharashtra’s Thane district has alerted people living on the banks of Bhatsa river, as the water level is rising in the dam due to heavy rainfall. According to an official release, the water level in Bhatsa dam was at 134.08 metres at 5.30 pm, and the gates of the reservoir are likely to be opened anytime, which is likely to cause flooding in the nearby villages.

With rivers in spate and bridges flooded due to incessant rains, several roads in Maharashtra’s Palghar district have been closed for traffic, an official said on Friday.

According to the administration, the district has received an average of 149.38 mm rain in the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Friday.

— ENDS —



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