Heavy rain cripples life in Gujarat; seven persons washed away, IMD issues alert | 10 points

Gujarat chief secretary has advised administration to stay vigilant in areas where large crowds are expected due to upcoming festivals during the Shravan month.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday issued a warning that Gujarat would experience heavy to extremely heavy rain over the next 2-3 days.

NDRF in Gujarat carries out rescue operation of those stranded due to rains (Twitter Photo)

Amid heavy rainfall over the past two days, parts of Gujarat have been inundated, displacing hundreds of residents to safer locations. Navsari in particular experienced severe flooding, leading the IMD to issue a “red alert” for the district on August 26.

Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel has directed officials to evacuate residents from low-lying areas to safer locations. His office said that the districts most affected by the heavy rainfall include Valsad, Tapi, Navsari, Surat, Narmada, and Panchmahal in South Gujarat.

Here are the details of the situation in Gujarat due to heavy rains:

1. A search operation by the NDRF is underway in Morbi district to locate seven individuals who were swept away with their tractor-trolley while crossing a flooded causeway on a river.
2. According to data from the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), Khergam taluka in Navsari district recorded the highest rainfall in the last 24 hours with 356 mm, ending at 6 AM on Monday.
3. Other districts that received over 100 mm of rainfall include Narmada, Saurashtra, Rajkot, Tapi, Mahisagar, Morbi, Dahod and Vadodara.
4. The Gujarat chief secretary has advised the administration to stay vigilant in areas where large crowds are expected due to upcoming festivals during the Shravan month.
5. With the current spell of rains, districts in South Gujarat have received more than 105 percent of their average annual rainfall so far, the highest in the state.
6. Eight districts in South Gujarat and Saurashtra have received more than 100 percent of their average annual rainfall.
7. Due to rainfall in the catchment areas, the water level at the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Dam has risen significantly to 135.30 meters.
8. Gujarat's 206 reservoirs contained 3.64 lakh million cubic feet of water, representing 65 percent of their total capacity.
9. Due to substantial increases in water levels, 72 reservoirs were put on high alert and 15 on regular alert.
10. Local administration has been told to ensure that roads closed due to flooding are restored immediately and electricity supply is not disrupted for long.