Hindon recedes, but homes still flooded in Ghaziabad

The discharge in the Hindon River was 27,000 cusecs on Tuesday afternoon at a level of 201.10 metres

The flow of water of the river Hindon at the Hindon barrage marginally dropped by 875 cusecs to 27,191 cusecs on Tuesday night, according to Ghaziabad irrigation department officials aware of the development, adding that the water discharge in the river has decreased for the first time in six days.

The flooded 220kv electricity sub-station in Morti in Ghaziabad on Tuesday. If the 220kv sub-station is shut down, half of Ghaziabad may lose power, officials said. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The officials said that the flow of water released in the barrage reduced by 1,000 cusecs earlier on Tuesday, before rising again a few hours later.

According to the Uttar Pradesh irrigation department (UPID), the discharge in the Hindon was 27,000 cusecs on Tuesday afternoon at a level of 201.10 metres, after reaching a high of 28,066 cusecs and flowing at a level of 201.15 metres on Monday. The discharge rose to 27,191 cusecs with a water level of 201.25 metres as on 7pm on Tuesday. The water discharge in the Hindon was only 2,848 cusecs and 199.05 metres last Thursday before steadily increasing until Monday -- the danger level on the Hindon River is 205.80 metres

“The river discharge has decreased since Monday, and we expect it to decrease further,” said Binod Kumar Singh, executive engineer at UPID (Okhla).

Large portions of Karhera in Sahibabad remain submerged. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

However, district administration officials said the approximately 7,000 people from the submerged Karhera neighbourhood in Sahibabad, who were relocated or evacuated to safer areas, will not be able to return until the stagnant water is flushed out and basic facilities are restored.

The river waters have been spreading on floodplains and inundating areas near several upstream villages and the Karhera locality in Sahibabad for the past few days.

“It is estimated that 7,000-8,000 people have relocated or been evacuated to safer locations far from Karhera. Although the water level has dropped by a foot in the last 12 hours, residents may not be able to return until basic services are restored. We will allow them to return once basic services such as electricity and water have been restored. Due to flooding, the electricity sub-station of Kanha Upvan has yet to start. At the same time, efforts are being made to keep water away from the 220kv Morti sub-station,” said Vinay Kumar Singh, sub-divisional magistrate (Sadar).

He added, “We are still concerned because the Indian Meteorological Department has predicted rain. This could result in water logging.” The Hindon has a basin area of about 7,000 square kilometres. It originates in the Shivalik range in Saharanpur district and flows down to Muzaffarnagar, before making its way through Shamli, Meerut, Baghpat, Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar to meet the Yamuna downstream.

According to UP power transmission corporation limited (UPPTCL) officials, the Kanha Upvan 132kv electricity station is still shut after a complete shutdown at 6.15am on Sunday.

“The 132kv Kanha Upvan will reopen once the water has receded completely. The water has also submerged the nearby 220kv sub-station of Morti, and we have deployed four-five hydrants, several pumps, and three-four tractors, all of which are constantly drawing water. The water is still touching the control room stairs, and our activities have prevented it from rising further. If this happens and water gets into the panels, we may have to shut it down,” said Radhey Shyam, a UPPTCL superintending engineer (SE).

The 220kv Morti sub-station feeds the 132kv Kanha Upvan sub-station and another 132kv sub-station in Mohan Nagar.

“If the 220kv sub-station is shut down, half of the city may lose power. The rain forecast may not impact the station, but the main concern is the flow of water from upstream areas of the Hindon River. We need bigger gauge pumps to flush out more water,” Shyam added.

Meanwhile, a 42-year-old woman identified as Moni Kumari by local police died after falling in a water-logged pit near her home in Ator Nagla village, upstream of the Hindon River.

“Due to the flooding of the Hindon River, her family was relocated to a safer location. On Tuesday, the water level dropped by about a foot. So the woman returned to her house to see if her belongings remained intact. While wading through the water, she slipped and drowned in a water-logged pit near her house. She also had a head injury. We suspect she fell unconscious from the injury and could not move out of the water. The body was sent for an autopsy,” said assistant commissioner of police Ravi Kumar Singh (Nandgram).

On Monday, police recovered the bodies of two people from the flooded Karhera locality in Sahibabad: Krish Mishra, 16, and his neighbour, Adarsh Sharma, 18. They had gone into the flooded area near their house after being evacuated and drowned.

In another incident on July 16, 19-year-old Ritik Singh drowned near his house in Loni’s Ram Park Colony after the neighbourhood was inundated due to a significant breach in the Alipur embankment and water from overflowing Yamuna entered at least nine villages, Tronica City industrial area, and nearby neighbourhoods on the intervening night of July 13 and 14.