New Delhi: Floods in various parts of the country have wrecked havoc with two persons being killed in Rajasthan, Gujarat evacuating close to 25,000 people and Odisha too ordering evacuations from various low-lying areas in the state.
Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said there is no flood-like situation in the state, which was being lashed by heavy rains although some low-lying areas in a few districts were inundated. On the upside, the situation in flood-ravaged Assam improved considerably as the swollen Brahmaputra and Barak rivers, along with their tributaries, started flowing below the danger mark at most places.
In West Bengal, lowlands in Birbhum, Purulia, West Medinipore and Hooghly districts were inundated. With the meteorological department predicting more rains in the Gangetic region of the state in the next 24 hours. Rains lashed state capital Kolkata through the night, inundating thoroughfares and choking traffic.
In the neighbouring coastal state of Odisha, extremely heavy rains and thundershowers, along with high-speed surface winds, are expected tomorrow due to the formation of a low pressure area over the region. The Odisha government has dispatched one Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) team each to the northern Keonjhar and Bhadrak districts.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asked for people living in low-lying areas like Keonjhar, Bhadrak and Jajpur districts to be evacuated and ordered expedition of patrolling to "keep a watch on weak and vulnerable river embankments".
The levels of the Baitarani, Subarnarekha and Budhabalang rivers have been rising steadily following heavy rainfall in most parts of the state over the last couple of days. The state government has already sounded an alert about possible floods in six districts after the IMD forecast extremely heavy rainfall in the northern region of the state.
In Gujarat, over 10,000 people were shifted to safer locations in Banaskantha district, nearly 9,790 to Patan and 2,800 to Ahmedabad. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said the large inflow of water into rivers and dams in Banaskantha and Patan were caused by heavy rains in neighbouring Rajasthan. The desert state saw heavy rains in Jalore, Pali and Sirohi districts which caused inundation, leaving several people marooned.
A woman and her daughter, meanwhile, died after being swept away while crossing a bridge over a swollen canal in Udaipur. The Army and IAF choppers have been pressed into rescue operations in the state. The road and rail network has also been affected in the region.
Uttar Pradesh too experienced rainfall over several places. Temple town Varanasi recorded nearly 100 mm of rain.
(With PTI inputs)
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