Ghaziabad: Second breach in Alipur embankment affects over 10,000 residents

The 18km long embankment serves as the primary defence against the Yamuna’s rising waters for the local population. Stretching nine kilometres each in Ghaziabad and Baghpat districts, the embankment is located upstream of Delhi’s Wazirabad

A major breach in the Alipur embankment on Thursday evening, widened from five metres to 50 metres by Friday evening, flooding several residential and industrial areas in Ghaziabad’s Loni, district officials said.Over 10,000 people and approximately 1,000 hectares of agricultural land have been affected by the rising waters, they said.

At the site, around 300 workers and officials were engaged in filling the ever-widening gap with boulders, sandbags, and other materials such as tin sheets. (Sakib Ali/HT photo)

The 18km long embankment serves as the primary defence against the Yamuna’s rising waters for the local population. Stretching nine kilometres each in Ghaziabad and Baghpat districts, the embankment is located upstream of Delhi’s Wazirabad.

Within a span of just two days, the embankment has experienced two breaches, said district officials. The first breach, of approximately five metres, near Pachayra village happened on Wednesday afternoon, and it was temporarily repaired after six hours of strenuous efforts by the police and firefighters.

“The current breach occurred at Subhanpur, 500 metres towards Baghpat, late Thursday evening and water entered at least nine villages in Ghaziabad. Multiple departments, including the Uttar Pradesh irrigation department, National Highways Authority of India, and district administrations of Baghpat and Ghaziabad, are working against the clock to seal the breach. The overflowing Yamuna waters have inundated nine villages. All necessary measures are being taken to evacuate people and relocate them to safer areas,” said Vivek Srivastava, Ghaziabad’s additional district magistrate (ADM), finance and revenue.

“On Thursday, hundreds of sandbags were washed away even as we attempted to seal the breach. The gap has widened since then, and various departments are working tirelessly to make the necessary repairs. We estimate that around 10,000 people have been directly or indirectly affected by the resultant floods,” said the ADM.

The list of affected villages includes Nauraspur, Alipur, Mirpur Hindu, Lutfullapur Nawada, Badarpur, Khanpur Japti, Harampur, Ilaichipur, and Pychara, along with four other villages in the Baghpat district.

“The breach has widened to approximately 50-55 metres by Friday evening, and all efforts are being made to seal it. We expect the work to be completed by Saturday. The water flow has affected areas in both Ghaziabad and Baghpat districts. The damage to the embankment is a result of the excessive volume of water in the Yamuna, exacerbated by heavy rainfall in the upstream areas since June,” said Utkarsh Bhardwaj, executive engineer, irrigation department Baghpat.

Meanwhile, on Friday, the water level in the Yamuna showed a marginal decline of 0.3m as compared to Thursday, but remained above the danger mark of 209 metres at the site.

Officials from the irrigation department said the water level was 212.1m on Thursday and 211.8m on Friday. “This season, the river has surpassed the previous highest flood level of 211.4m recorded in 2013 and 211.1m recorded during the 1978 floods,” said an official from the irrigation department.

The Alipur embankment has a capacity to withstand water levels up to 213.3m, the official said.

“Our teams are deployed in areas adjacent to the Yamuna and also in Loni. Evacuated individuals are being relocated to safer locations. Livestock has also been rescued, with many suffering injuries and health issues in the flooding. We have deployed teams of veterinary doctors for their treatment, and health camps have been set up for the rescued/evacuated individuals. We are receiving numerous calls for evacuation, including several such calls from Loni,” said a spokesperson from the eighth battalion of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Ghaziabad.