Flood situation still grim, toll touches 83
Patna, Aug 5 (UNI) Airdropping of food packets and essentials in the flood affected Darbhanga district and other marooned people in the vicinity intensified for the second day today even as the overall flood situation in Bihar continued to remain grim with the death toll rising to 83 so far.
With report of one more death from Darbhanga district, the toll in current fury of floods in the state touched 83 today. Flood waters in township areas, however, started receding and those who fled homes due to inundation, were now returning.
The movement of traffic on Darbhanga-Madhubani road and on Darbhanga-Muzaffarpur road was restored today after the volumn of water decreased.
The two Indian Air Force helicopters continued to make sorties airdropping food packets in the worst affected Singhvara, Jale, Biraul and Gaurbharav blocks of Darbhanga district.
In Samastipur district, several new villages came under the flood waters as Bagmati river started overtopping from its embankment near Thahar village. The breach in embankment on Bagmati river has inundated several villages at Khanpur and Kalyanpur blocks while flood situation in Warisnaga, Hassanpur, Bithan, Shivaji Nagar and Rosera blocks continued to remain grim.
The situation in Begusarai district was also no better as more than 100 Panchayats there had already been affected by floods rendering lakhs of people homeless.
In Muzaffarpur district more than 100 villages went under chest deep of waters after breaches in the embankment of the Burhi Gandak at several places forcing more than two lakhs people to leave homes.
In West Champaran district, over 300,000 people have been affected in about 200 villages while Jogpatti, Nautan, Bariya, Majhaulia and Sikcha blocks were the worst hit by the floods.
In Katihar, the water level of river Ganga was increasing alarmingly and was about to touch the highest ever level that had in 1987. Purnea, Bhagalpur and East Champaran were among the other districts affected in current fury of floods.
Meanwhile, the Central Water Commission sources here today said that Burhi Gandak was flowing 30 cm below the highest ever water level of in 1987 at Sikandarpur while it was 16 cm below than the highest water level of 1987 in Samastipur. Other major rivers including the Ganges, Bagmati, Punpun, Kosi, Mahananda, Sone, Ghaghara, Kamlabalan and the Adhwarad group of rivers were still flowing above the danger mark at several places threatening breach of embankments at many points and subsequent flooding of new areas.
UNI