Yamuna waters level dips after remaining above danger mark for over 8 hours

The Yamuna swelled to an all-time high of 208.66m on July 13, flooding low-lying areas in the Capital and prompting large-scale evacuations

The Yamuna was flowing at 205.12m at 9am in Delhi on Wednesday after remaining above the danger mark (205.33m) for over eight hours even as the flood control department remained on alert following heavy rainfall in Himachal Pradesh that has left over 50 people dead.

The water level at Delhi’s Old Railway Bridge is considered the benchmark for assessing the flood situation in the Capital. (Hindustan Times)

The water level was 21cm below the danger mark as per the last update from the department officials and is expected to go down further. The river swelled to an all-time high of 208.66m on July 13, flooding low-lying areas in the Capital and prompting large-scale evacuations. The Yamuna waters level in Delhi was last recorded above the danger level on July 29.

An official said they were on alert but there was no alarming situation. “The water released from Hathni Kund Barrage [in Haryana] has been less than 50,000 cusecs over the last 24 hours and it has been progressively going down. The current water release from the barrage is around 18,000 cusecs and the water levels are expected to further go down,” the official added.

The water level at Delhi’s Old Railway Bridge is considered the benchmark for assessing the flood situation in the capital with 204.5m being the warning mark. The danger level of 205.33m prompts the evacuation of people living along the Yamuna banks.

The Central Water Commission data showed the river crossed the danger level at 10pm on Tuesday and rose to 205.56m an hour later. The water released from the Hathni Kund barrage usually takes 48 to 72 hours to reach Delhi. A flood alert is issued when the discharge from the barrage is above 1,00,000 cusecs. “The current water level rise was expected due to the release of over 70,000 cusecs of water on Monday...we expect the levels to gradually settle down if there are no further spells of heavy to very heavy rainfall upstream,” the official said.

The water released towards Delhi is regulated at Hathni Kund barrage 228 kilometers upstream. The highest recorded Yamuna waters level in Delhi (207.49m) on September 6, 1978, was breached on July 13 when the water released from the barrage was above 2,00,000 cusecs.

The Delhi government said there will not be a problem and the water will easily pass through Delhi. “The departments are on alert monitoring the situation in real time. We expect Haryana to keep Delhi posted in case they release high volumes of water into the Yamuna. We also expect Haryana to distribute water into canal flowing towards Uttar Pradesh also,” a government spokesperson said.