Orange Alert for rain in four India states

New Delhi: India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday issued an orange alert for rain in four states including Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

IMD informed that Jharkhand, Odisha are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on July 16.

“#OrangeAlert: #Jharkhand & #Odisha likely to get heavy to very heavy rainfall (115.6 to 204.4 mm) on 16th July”, IMD shared in a tweet.

Further, IMD tweeted that Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are likely to receive heavy to very heavy showers from July 16 to 17.

Meanwhile, talking to ANI, Vikram Singh, Director, Meteorological Department, Dehradun said, “There is a possibility of more rainfall in Uttarakhand on July 16 and 17. For today, a red alert has been issued in Dehradun, Tehri, Pauri and Haridwar districts and an orange alert has been issued for the remaining districts. There will be a slight reduction in rainfall on July 18.”

Singh further said that the rainfall will slightly decrease on July 18 but added that it is necessary to be on high alert.

“Although there will be a slight decrease in the rainfall on July 18, still there are chances of receiving heavy rainfall. So it is necessary to be on high alert”, he said.

Heavy rainfall in the state has led to several landslides that have blocked roads and highways, stranding scores of people.

On Sunday, a senior official said the Balwakot-Dharchula road in Dharchula near the border area of the Pithoragarh district was blocked following a landslide.

The flood rescue operation by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) continues in the flood-affected areas of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Delhi, where torrential rainfall and the release of water from barrages have resulted in unprecedented floods, an official statement said on late Friday evening.

58 NDRF teams have been deployed in flood-affected states for rescue and relief work in coordination with State administrations. 16 teams of the NDRF have been deployed in Delhi, 11 teams in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand each, and 10 teams in Punjab and Haryana.

The flood-like situation in Biswanth Sub-Division continued to be grim as over 32,400 people have been affected so far, according to Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).

ASDMA said that, 22,417 people have been affected in Gohpur revenue circle areas and nearly 10,000 people affected in Halem revenue circle areas.

As per officials, 47 villages under Biswanath Sub-Division were submerged while 858 hectares of crop area have been inundated.

A local in the Gohpur area said water level has risen up to 3-feet inside his house. “We are now facing lot of problems. Now we can’t live in our house. The water level is still increasing. We are hoping that, the government will help us,” he said.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday visited a flood relief camp in Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya at Mori Gate in north Delhi.

During his visit to the relief camp where residents from the flooded Yamuna Bazar area have taken shelter, the CM was accompanied by Delhi Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Atishi.

“Due to the rise in the water level of Yamuna River, many low-lying areas were affected and have been facing waterlogging for the past few days. So residents of affected areas were moved to various relief camps across the capital. Six districts in the city have been affected and Delhi government has set up relief camps at several places in these six districts. Relief camps were set up in nearby schools and Dharamshalas and facilities for drinking water and toilets were ensured. This is one such relief camp, we have residents from the Yamuna Bazar area here”, CM Kejriwal told reporters after visiting the camp.

Meanwhile, Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena also inspected flood-affected areas in Delhi’s Raj Ghat area today.

Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj earlier today inspected a relief camp near Mayur Vihar.

On Saturday, Delhi PWD Minister Atishi directed the chief secretary to ensure that all amenities are provided to people sheltered in relief camps.

Marooned locals residing on the banks of the Yamuna were evacuated and shifted to relief camps after the river breached the danger mark, resulting in water spilling over and flooding several parts of the national capital.

There have been complaints of inadequate facilities at the relief camps, with people sheltered there claiming shortage of water, inadequate toilets, electricity and poor quality of food.

Meanwhile, according to the data shared by the Central Water Commission on their portal, the water level of the Yamuna River dropped to 205.88 metres at 12 noon on Sunday.