Flood situation still grim across Bihar

Darbhanga remains cut off as roads and railway tracks are still submerged in flood waters, reports Amitabh Jha.

With rains abating on Sunday and the Met department predicting ‘light to normal’ rains over the next 24 hours (till Tuesday evening) the overall flood situation in the state looked set to ease but for now the situation was bad enough.

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Over 22 lakh people affected by the floods in the 12 districts were facing food and drinking water shortages. Many people have been forced to go without food and drink contaminated flood waters, residents and relief workers from several areas said.

Darbhanga remained the worst hit district with seven lakh people affected while Sitamarhi, Madhubani, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Gopalganj, East and West Champaran, Saharsa, Supaul, Khagaria and Purnia were also affected in varying degrees.

Darbhanga town remained cut off from the rest of the state as roads and railway tracks still submerged under flood waters at several places.

Barring the Gandak and Burhi Gandak all major rivers including Bagmati, Kosi, Mahananda, Punpun and Adhwara group of rivers were receding according to the flood control cell of the state water resource department.

While water levels had gone down in these rivers they were still flowing above the danger mark at several points, it added.

Contrary to the trend of other rivers Gandak and Burhi Gandak, however, are rising following rains in upper catchment areas in Nepal. Over 2.4 lakh cusecs of water was released in the Burhi Gandak from the Balmiki Nagar barrage on Monday morning.

While the Burhi Gandak had topped the danger mark at several places Gandak was flowing above the danger level at Chakia, water resources department sources said.

The swollen Tirhut canal breached its embankment in a stretch of around 500 metres in the Muzaffarpur district, inundating fresh areas. Thousands of people were affected as swirling waters flooded around 38 villages spread over Madhavpur, Maidapur, Kodaria and Pahlampur in the district due to the breach, the report said.

The airport at Patahi, near Muzaffarpur, was also partially inundated by flood waters, it said. Close vigil was being kept on the embankments where swollen rivers were making erosions, and boats were being engaged to evacuate people to safer places, the water resources officials said.