Torrential rains lash northern states, alert sounded in Punjab; Delhi monitoring Yamuna water level

SHIMLA/JAIPUR/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Heavy rains lashed northern states with an alert sounded in Punjab following the release of excess water from Bhakra dam and the Yamuna nearing the warning level in Delhi on Saturday, while normalcy was slowly returning to flood-ravaged Kerala, where so far 113 people have lost their lives.

Andhra Pradesh too received heavy showers, with a swollen Krishna river leaving 87 villages and hundreds of acres of farmland under a sheet of water in two districts.

NDRF personnel retrieved the body of a girl who drowned in the swollen river in Krishna district, taking the death toll to two in the state.

After touching a maximum of 8.21 lakh cusecs in the early hours of the day, the flood discharge at Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada has fallen to 7.99 lakh cusecs at 10 am while the inflow remained steady at 7.57 lakh cusecs, the State Real-Time Governance Centre said.

Even the discharges from upstream reservoirs showed a declining trend but the travails of more than 17,500 people in 87 villages under 32 manuals in Krishna and Guntur districts may continue for the next two days.

In all 11,553 people in the two districts have been moved to 56 relief camps where food and drinking water are being provided.

State Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan conducted an aerial survey of the flood-hit areas of Krishna, while ministers visited the marooned localities in Vijayawada city and supervised the relief measures.

The body of a 17-year-old boy was found floating in the overflowing dam in Himachal Pradesh, where several roads were blocked following multiple landslides.

All educational institutions in Kangra district have also been asked to remain closed on Saturday due to incessant rainfall.

Several people stranded near Palampur following flash floods were rescued.

There is a heavy flow of water in Baner Khud and Baan Ganga adjoining Chamunda Ji and the water level in rivulets in Nurpur subdivision is on the rise as well, an official said.

In Punjab, an alert has been sounded in several districts following the release of excess water from Bhakra dam through the spill gates after heavy rainfall in its catchment area.

The Bhakra Beas Management Board authorities discharged 17,000 cusecs of the excess water out of the total release of 53,000 cusecs through the spill gates, an official said.

The remaining 36,000 cusecs were released after its use for power generation, he added.

On Saturday, rains lashed several places in Punjab, including Ludhiana, Amritsar, Mohali, Chandigarh.

People living near the Sutlej river and low-lying areas have been advised to be vigilant and take precautions to safeguard themselves.

With the Yamuna also flowing near the warning level, Delhi agencies are closely monitoring the situation to deal with any possible flooding, an official said.

Yamuna's water level reached 203.27 metres, slightly below the warning level of 204.5 metres, an official said.

The official said at 10 am, over 21,000 cusecs water was released from Hathani Kund Barrage in Haryana.

Besides, around 17,000 cusecs water was also released from the barrage.

In Rajasthan, hundreds of people were shifted to safer places, with Ajmer, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Vanasthali, Bhilwara and Sikar receiving 104.5 mm, 88.2, 79, 42.1,41 and 37.4 mm of rainfall.

The Met Department has issued a warning for extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places in eastern parts and heavy rainfall at isolated places in the western parts of the state.

People have started moving to their homes from relief camps in Kerala, even as the toll climbed to 113, with authorities retrieving more bodies from the landslide-hit districts of Malappuram and Wayanad.

Fifty people have so far lost their lives in Malappuram and 12 in Wayanad, the two northern districts, where 28 people are still missing.

Search operations are continuing at Kavalappara in Malappuram and Puthumala in Wayanad, the two areas which were the worst hit in the second spell of south-west monsoon rains since August 8, where massive landslides had wiped out two villages.

Kolkata, which is being battered by torrential rains, received 186.1 mm rainfall in the past 24 hours and the forecast is of more rains in the city.

Vehicular traffic was disrupted in several areas of central, south and north Kolkata, resulting in traffic snarls.

Flight operations were also affected, as take-off and landing were delayed, said a senior official of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport.

Eastern Railway CPRO Nikhil K Chakraborty said circular railway services were cancelled from 10.

40 am onwards, due to waterlogging.

Train movement in Sealdah and Howrah sections of the Eastern Railway was slow, but there has been no cancellation so far, Chakraborty said.