Over 26,000 families have been evacuated to safer places from four districts of Maharashtra as heavy rains disrupted normal life in 15 districts while 20 people were killed in Marathwada region of the state in rain related incidents, official sources said on Monday.
The families were evacuated from Nanded, Yavatmal, Buldhana and Jalgaon districts and the state government has sought help of the army and the navy in rescue and relief work, sources in the divisional commissionerate told.
Marathwada and Vidarbha regions bore the maximum brunt of the rains, with 170 villages in 16 tehsils of Yavatmal district in Vidarbha being severely affected by the downpour.
In Buldhana district, 4000 families in 80 villages were shifted to safer places.
Painganga and Wardha rivers in Yavatmal and Godavari river in Nanded were overflowing, sources said.
The Ulhas river in Thane district is in full spate following the heavy spell of rains, sources said.