As heavy rain lashed Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi, Nainital, Tehri and Pauri districts since Saturday, 12 people have died in landslips and rain-related road accidents. While three persons died in road accidents in Nainital district on Saturday evening, the death toll reached 12 within two days of heavy rain across the State after three persons died in Pauri district’s Srinagar as a vehicle fell into a gorge. Four persons died in Tehri district’s Kumarkhera area after a jeep was trapped in a landslide, and two persons died when a tree fell on a building in Uttarkashi district’s Barkot area.
As the rain continued to lash the State on Sunday, the roads, especially the ones leading to the Char Dham yatra including the Rishikesh-Badrinath national highway, and the Rishikesh-Kedarnath national highway between Sonprayag and Gaurikund, remained cut off due to landslips, which disrupted the yatra.
By Sunday evening, 442 roads, including few national highways and roads under the PMGSY, remained blocked. Several bridges across the State also got damaged in the heavy rain.
According to the State Disaster Management Department, a situation of threat loomed over Haridwar on Sunday as the river Ganga reached 293.2 metres against its danger mark of 294 m. Six teams of the Haridwar police and five rafts were kept ready in case of a mishap due to the rising water levels.
The Bhagirathi at Uttarkashi remained at 1121 m, like Saturday, which was 2m below its danger mark. And the Sharda at Champawat was flowing at 221.10 m, which was only 0.6 m below its danger mark.
According to the Dehradun Meteorological Centre, the weather would improve from Monday morning as the rainfall across the State would considerably reduce.
“Water levels have been reducing and the situation is under control. By Monday the situation will further improve as the rainfall across the State will reduce,” Additional Secretary (Disaster Management) C. Ravishankar said.
PTI adds:
At least 21 people were killed in rain-related incidents in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Assam with monsoon gaining momentum in several parts of North and Northeast India.
Delhi received light rain, keeping the mercury within comfortable levels with the maximum temperature at 30.1 degrees Celsius, five notches below the normal.
According to the India Meteorological Department, 2.5 mm rainfall was recorded between 8.30 a.m. and 5.30 p.m. at Safdarjung observatory while weather stations at Lodhi Road, and Ridge recorded 2.6 mm and 0.6 mm rainfall respectively.
The minimum temperature was 26.4 degrees C, one notch below the normal and humidity level oscillated between 81 and 97 per cent in Delhi.
Several parts of U.P. received over 10 cm rainfall, even as the weather department predicted rain and thunder showers at many places in the State tomorrow.
Overnight showers have wreaked havoc in most parts Aligarh and Mathura with a large number of houses getting water-logged.
In Bijnor’s Nahtor area, two sisters, aged 30 and 32 years, were killed after the roof of their house collapsed on them due to heavy rain.
A minor and a 40-year-old woman died in Muzaffarnagar and Mathura respectively due to house collapse. A 25-year-old man died in lightning-strike in Balrampur, while three persons were electrocuted in Aligarh after coming in contact with a live wire as they were trying to pump out rain waters from their house.
Widespread rain lashed Punjab and Haryana, causing mercury to dip by a few notches. Many places in Punjab including Patiala, Ludhiana received rains which dropped the temperature by several notches, giving relief to residents from the hot and humid conditions.
Rain also pounded many places in Haryana including Yamunanagar, Narwana, Hisar, Ambala, Karnal and Gurgaon.
In Assam, flood situation remained serious as one person died and nearly 1.77 lakh people were affected across seven districts in the State.
According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, one person was swept away in flood water at Narayanpur in Lakhimpur district.
The ASDMA spokesman said nearly 1.77 lakh people are hit by flood in 267 villages across Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Morigaon, Jorhat, Dhemaji, Biswanath and Sivasagar districts. Over 1,33,000 hectares of crop land are under water at this moment in the State.
An elderly woman and her minor grandson were killed when a portion of their house collapsed in Rajasthan’s Karauli district due to heavy rainfall.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall has affected normal life in Karauli, where several people have been shifted to safer places by teams of district administration and police. - PTI
