Flood situation turns grim in Gujarat, 40,000 evacuated

Ahmedabad, Sep 7 (UNI) Around 40,000 people have been evacuated from five Central Gujarat districts as the flood situation turned grim following release of water from Kadana and Dharoi dams since yesterday.

The flash floods were caused following release of nearly 10 lakh cusecs of water from the Kadana dam in Panchmahals district into Mahi river last night, as the water level in the dam kept on increasing alarmingly due to heavy rains in its catchment areas and Madhya Pradesh for the past couple of days.

The affected districts are Panchmahals, Kheda, Anand, Ahmedabad and Vadodara.

Official sources said over 250 villages in the low-lying areas of these districts had been put on high alert and hundreds had been shifted as Mahi river, flowing at 413 ft at 0600 hrs today, was likely to touch its danger mark of 418 ft by this evening.

A report from Anand said over 6,600 people have been shifted to safer places and 41 villages put on alert following flood threats.

As 1.75 lakh cusecs water is being released from Dharoi dam into Sabarmati river, more than 20,000 people living in low lying areas, from Indira bridge to Vasna barrage, have been shifted out, said Ahmedabad Muncipal Commissioner I P Gautam.

He said evacuations are also being carried out in eight downstream villages. He said the inflow in Dharoi dam is at 2.5 lakh cusecs, and the water is just one foot below the danger mark.

About 8000 people were evacuated from Panchmahals district and 30 villages are on alert, district officials said.

The Vadodara district authorities have issued flood warning in three talukas of Padra, Savli and Vadodara rural and asked people living in the low-lying areas to move to safer places. Because of flooding in the Orsang river, 135 families from Dhokalia village under Sankheda taluka have been shifted to primary schools. The village was submerged in flood waters and senior officials rushed to the spot. A 60-year-old woman, identified as Janaki Kodi, was drowned in the flooded Uchh river near Ambajethi village under Pavi-Jetpur taluka this morning.

District collector Rajiv Topno told UNI, all possible precautionary measures had been taken in flood-prone talukas as several rivers were in spate because of heavy downpour in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

UNI SS/MMG SHB MIR HT1900