More UP districts engulfed by rising rivers-toll crosses 50, relief on war footing

Mangalore Today News Network

Lucknow, Aug 20, 2014: According to official sources,  flood fury continued in the eastern and central region of Uttar Pradesh  with more districts being engulfed by the rising rivers even as the toll in flood-related incidents crossed 50.

 

There were reports of breaches in the embankments in some districts as a result of which the flood waters had entered the villages. In Deoria district, the swollen Ghaghra river breached its embankment at Pidara.

The Jarwal area in Gonda district has also been badly affected and thousands of people have been forced to leave their villages and shift to safer places. Among them are people in the over 200 villages in Barabanki district. Ghaghra was flowing 140 cm above the danger mark.

Minister for Irrigation Shivpal Singh Yadav made an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas and directed the officials to take all possible measures to provide relief to the people.

Over a dozen districts, mostly in the eastern and central region of the state, have been facing the brunt of the flood fury. Almost all the major rivers, including the Ganga, Rapti, Saryu, Ghaghra, Ramganga and many other smaller rivers have been rising at different places.

The toll in the flood-related incidents rose to 50 with reports of more deaths in Barabanki, Gonda and Bahraich districts. Over two dozen people were said to be missing and efforts were on to trace them, sources said.

The districts of Gonda, Bahraich, Balrampur and Shravasti remained cut off from the rest of the state. An estimated 30 lakh people in around 800 villages in a dozen districts in the state are affected by the floods, officials said.

There were also reports of protests at some places by the flood-affected people over failure of the administration to provide them relief material. Officials said that there might be some respite after Wednesday as rain has stopped in the neighbouring Uttarakhand state, which might result in decline in the levels of the rivers.

NEW DELHI : Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh  reviewed the flood situation in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and assured the states all Central assistance, even as over 2,100 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel have been deployed for rescue work in the states.

Singh spoke to Chief Ministers Akhilesh Yadav of UP and Jitan Ram Manjhi of Bihar over telephone and promised them Central assistance. The home minister also directed the National Executive Committee (NEC) on Disaster Management to closely monitor the flood situation.

“The NEC on Disaster Management is assisting flood-affected states in relief and rescue operations,” said the Home Ministry on micro-blogging site Twitter. The NEC met under the chairmanship of Sneh Lata Kumar, Secretary (Border Management). Representatives of different agencies attended the meeting. Heavy monsoon rain has created flood-like situations in low-lying areas of many states in the country.

The NDRF has deployed 53 teams, consisting of 2,158 personnel, to carry out rescue and relief operations in the flood-affected areas. “NDRF teams are stationed in vulnerable parts, as per the request of state governments.

The teams are equipped with boats, divers and other flood rescue-related equipment,” said a senior official. A situation report from Bihar said 13 NDRF teams have been engaged for rescue and relief operations in Bihar at Saharsa, Sitamarhi, Nalanda, Supoul, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj and Didarganj.

The NDRF teams are distributing relief materials to people who do not want to be evacuated. The teams have also organised a medical camp to give essential medicines and treatment to flood-affected people.

In HP :  Heavy rain, fash foods and landslides wreaked havoc in the most parts of Himachal Pradesh which claimed lives of 31 persons and at least 633 cattle during the current monsoon season, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said on Monday, PTI reports from Shimla.  The chief minister, who assessed the loss and damage at the State Level Disaster Management Authority meeting said the government has restored most of the damaged roads and drinking water supply schemes.  The total loss of damaged roads and bridges was assessed around Rs 412 crore, he said.

  The roads and drinking water schemes suffered maximum damage and the of?cials concerned have been directed to restore all the roads by August 22 and also reconstruct the Bailey Bridge on National Highway 88 over Kunah rivulet and at Jahu over sheer Khud, he said.

 “Lakhs of people in thousands of villages of several districts, including Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Gonda, Lakhimpur, Barabanki, Sitapur and Faizabad have been badly affected by the floods so far.

The situation is grim in the Balrampur and Barabanki districts due to incessant rain, and the Rapti, Ghagra, Budhi Rapti and Sharda rivers are flowing above the danger mark,” said an NDRF statement.