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Heavy rains trigger flood fury in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha; 6 dead
While three rain-related deaths were reported in Odisha in the 24 hours leading upto Monday, Madhya Pradesh reported two deaths in the same time period, according to inputs from respective state disaster management officials.
Atleast six people were killed and lakhs displaced due to heavy rain reported in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan since Sunday, officials said on Monday.
While three rain-related deaths were reported in Odisha in the 24 hours leading upto Monday, Madhya Pradesh reported two deaths in the same time period, according to inputs from respective state disaster management officials.
At least nine lakh people have been affected by flooding across 13 districts of Odisha so far. According to an official from the state’s disaster management authority, a 10-year-old boy was washed away in Jalaka river at Basta block of Balasore district on Monday ; a woman was washed away in Subarnarekha river in Baliapal block of the same district on Monday ; a 10-year-old girl in Baripada town of Mayurbhanj died in a wall collapse and farmer was washed away by floodwaters in Jabinpur village under Hatadihi block of Keonjhar district on Sunday .
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The four deaths take the total death toll from rain-related incidents in the state to 14 in the last four days.
According to the official mentioned above, floodwaters in most districts are ebbing but Balasore continued to face a deluge. People of atleast 150 villages in four blocks of the district are still marooned by floodwaters from the Subarnarekha river, the official said.
District collector, Dattatrey Bhausaheb Shinde, said over 40,000 people in the district have been evacuated to safer places.
The state’s water resources minister, Tukuni Sahu, said the Subarnarekha river is flowing above the danger level but the water level is expected to recede by Tuesday.
Meanwhile, in Madhya Pradesh, a 49-year-old sarpanch in Ashoknagar district, Brijendra Singh Raghuvanshi was swept away in an overflowing drain on Monday after he failed to get out from the car that submerged in the drain. The second death reported from the state was that of businessman Akhbar Khan (38) in Bhopal on Monday. He died after a tree fell on him, said an official from the state disaster management authority.
According to the official, as many as 35 districts received heavy rainfall on Monday.
According to India Meterological Department (IMD) data, Bhopal airport recorded its highest 24-hour rainfall in a decade on Monday with 250 mm of reported downpour. Overall, Madhya Pradesh recieved 210 mm of rain.
In Bhopal, as many as 200 colonies were facing water logging issues. District collector Avinash Lavaniya said, “SDRF teams are evacuating stranded people. The rescue operation is going on.”
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All major rivers of the state, including the Narmada, Chambal, Shipra, Betwa, and Shivna, crossed the danger danger mark after which sluice gates of 27 dams were opened, according to a state government official. More than 350 villages located on the bank of Narmada river have been vacated as water entered these villages, officials said.
State home minister Narottam Mishra said, “All the SDERF and home guards are on alert. Many villages, which are affected due to flood, the relief operations are also going on.”
Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed to people to stay alert and avoid going near dams and rivers.
In Rajasthan, heavy rainfall over the last 24 hours and the release of water from Kota barrage has led to a flood-like situation in Kota, Jhalawar and surrounding districts. About 3.83 lakh cusec water were released following the opening of 14 of the 19 gates of Kota barrage, officials said.
Dag in Jhalawar recorded the highest rainfall (234 mm) followed by 224 mm in Kota city during this period, officials said. In Kota’s Pragati Nagar, a seven-feet-long crocodile was spotted in a residential area creating panic among the locals, however, the reptile was rescued.
Apart from Kota and Jhalawar, many areas in Bundi, Baran, Chittorgarh, Sawaimadhopur, Dausa and Karauli also recorded heavy to very heavy rainfall. The rainfall has been widespread in east Rajasthan during the last 24 hours.
IMD meteorologist SK Nayak said, “A low pressure area was formed in the north-eastern part of the Bay of Bengal and it turned into deep depression. On Saturday, it reached Madhya Pradesh as a depression and now it is passing through the northern part of Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh.”
The IMD has predicted heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours.
(With PTI inputs)
