Yamuna’s water level rose above the danger mark on Saturday after Haryana released 3,11,190 cusecs of water. An alert has been issued and rescue-relief operations have begun as the low-lying areas are most at risk of flooding.
The Indian Express reports that at least 43 boats were deployed within an hour of the rise in water levels over the “danger” mark. “Water level in river Yamuna near Old Railway Bridge is expected to reach 205.4 metres between 9-11 pm today as water is being released from Hathini Kund Barrage. It has crossed the danger level. We have started making announcements in low-lying areas,” SDM (East) Arun Gupta told ANI.
The water in the Yamuna river crossed the ‘danger’ mark after Haryana released 3,11,190 cusecs of water.
“The water level of river Yamuna at Delhi Old Rly Bridge reached at 204.10 metres at 7 pm on July 27 (above the warning level) and has a rising trend. Our men are on the field through QRT (Quick Response Team) vehicle and three boats have been pressed into service today which are making announcements for people to evacuate the low-lying areas and also telling them the do’s and don’ts in floods,” a statement issued by the East Delhi district administration said.
The Met office has given a weather forecast of more rains. Hindustan Times quoted the India Meteorological Department (IMD), “A low-pressure area over western Uttar Pradesh and its neighbourhood persists. This system will bring widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall over Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and northwest Madhya Pradesh during the next two days.” This is apparently the first flood warning of the year.
Extra caution is being taken as 49 people have lost their lives due to heavy rains in Uttar Pradesh since Thursday. The Safdarjung observatory, whose data is the official figure for the city, registered 2.5 mm of rainfall between 5.30 pm on Friday and 8.30 am on Saturday, PTI reported.
