Flood toll at 134 in UP, situation improves in Asom

New Delhi, Aug 4 (UNI) The flood toll in Uttar Pradesh reached 134 today with 20 districts of the state still reeling under the flood fury but the situation improved slightly in Asom with a majority of the rivers showing a receding trend even as Monsoon remained active in the Northwest region.

While, three people drowned in Gorakhpur, one each was reported to have been killed in Lakhimpur Kheri, Basti, Gonda and Barabanki districts of Uttar Pradesh in the last 24 hrs.

Rescue operations were on in full-swing in the flood-hit Gorakhpur and Barabanki districts. Besides, local administration and PAC, Army columns had been deployed for relief work.

According to a report from Gorakhpur, the situation continued to be grim with nearly 213 villages totally submerged. The standing crop in about 98,098 hectares of agricultural land had been destroyed and 527 boats pressed for the rescue and relief work in the district.

Almost 80 villages of the Tarabganj and Colonelganj tehsil of Gonda district were still adversely affected by the flood. In Siddharthnagar, Rapti, Budhi Rapti, Doda and Ghoghi rivers were still flowing above the danger mark. Nearby 700 villages of Naugarh, Bansi, Shauhratganj, Etawah and Dumriyaganj are adversely affected by flood and 177 villages inundated.

Five tehsils of Lakimpur Kheri too remained inundated.

With an improvement in the flood situation, the spectre of water-borne epidemics like cholera, diarrhoea and malaria was looming large over the flood-affected areas in Asom.

The state government had opened 523 relief camps across the state, sheltering over one lakh flood-hit. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Home Minister Shivraj Patil were likely to pay an aerial visit to the flood affected areas of the state soon.

All the rivers and tributaries were flowing above the danger level in Miao sub-division in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh owing to incessant rains.

The rivers, Noa-Dihing, Namchik and Buri Dehing and their tributaries, in Arunachal Pradesh were in spate and the forest colony of Namchik and some government quarters of Kharsang town had been totally submerged. About 40 families had been shifted to safer places.

Pleasant weather continued to prevail in the national capital two days after heavy showers lashed the city maintaining the maximum temperature at 33.5 degrees Celsius, a degree below normal.

Heavy monsoon rains in Himachal Pradesh during the past 24 hours, triggered landslides in the hilly state.

Rain lashed some areas in Punjab overnight with Nangal Dam site receiving 11.5 mm rainfall. Patiala recorded 6.3 mm and Ludhiana reported trace rainfall.

Many areas in Haryana also experienced moderate rain with Narnaul turning the wettest place in the state, recording 96.0 mm downpour till this morning. Kalka, Morni, Barwala and Raipur Rani recorded 25 mm each while Panchkula measured 10 mm and Ambala 1.8 mm rainfall.

All rivers, including the Beas, Sutlej and the Ravi and their tributaries flowing through the state were in spate.

Orissa was facing a possible drought like situation. Concerned over the scanty rainfall in major parts of the state, the government today directed District Collectors to initiate steps to save the kharif crop.

The Bihar government issued instructions to the authorities concerned for installation of handpipes at flood relief camps to prevent a possible outbreak of epidemic among flood victims.

State Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED) Minister Prem Kumar said that the step had been taken to ensure safe drinking water supply among the flood victims. Safe drinking water was one of the vital steps to avoid any possibility of epidemic outbreak in the affected areas, he added.

Rajasthan recorded heavy rainfall in Kota and Udaipur divisions and Alwar district with intermittent rains lashing various parts of the state and most of the rivers overflowing. Jaipur also witnessed scattered rains with city's Bani Park area experiencing heavy rainfall.

Intermittent showers continued to hit the northern suburbs of Mumbai metropolis dipping the temperatures further low. The suburban train and air traffic was normal.

Despite a few spells of rain in Kolkata early this morning, the mercury shot up causing sweltering heat in the city. Met office recorded maximum temperature of 34.4 degrees Celsius and the minimum at 28.0 degrees Celsius.

Rains occurred at many places in Kerala and at isolated places in Lakshadweep. The Met office has forecast isolated heavy rain in North Kerala during the next 48 hours.

Goa has received almost double the rainfall so far as compared to the entire season last year, even as the island State experienced intermittent rains. Weather office sources told UNI that the State has so far received about 2,041 mm rainfall as against last season's total of 1,184.4 mm.

According to the forecast for the next 24 hrs, very heavy to extremely heavy rains are likely to occur at most places in Orissa, while heavy to very heavy rains are likely to occur at most places in Konkan, Goa, coastal Andhra Pradesh, coastal Karnataka and many places in Gujarat.

Heavy rains are likely to occur at many places in Gangetic West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Maharashtra and Kerala.

Rain or thundershowers are likely to occur at many places in Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Jharkhand, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Telangana, Rayalaseema, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.

UNI