Flood situation in Gujarat grim; 7 deaths in Arunachal, UP

New Delhi, Aug 9 (UNI) With incessant rains lashing Gujarat for the fourth consecutive day, the flood situation in Veraval, Keshod, Junagadh and Porbander continued to be grim, though the condition of rain-battered Bihar and UP improved during the past 24 hours.

Seven more rain-related deaths were reported from Arunachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Veraval, Talala and Sutrapada towns and 107 villages in the Junagad district of Gujarat were cut off from rest of the state with road and rail traffic completely disrupted and telephone networks jammed due to heavy water-logging.

Seven days of incessant rains and heavy water discharges from various irrigation dams into the river beds has made the flood situation grim in Kolhapur district of Maharashtra.

Even as the major rivers, including Ghagra, Rapti and Kwano, had started receding in Uttar Pradesh, three more deaths in the last 24 hrs has taken the toll to 179 so far.

The flood situation continues to be grim in Siddharthnagar district. Almost 450 villages of Naugarh, Bansi, Etawah, Dumriyaganj and Shauratgarh tehsils were still reeling under flood.

In Basti, about 90 of 188 flood affected villages, were still marooned. Three people, including a girl and two members of a family, succumbed in the last 24 hrs here.

The overall flood situation continued to remain grim in Bihar as Nepal today released one lakh 400 cusec water in the Kosi.

According to an official report of the Disaster Management department, the toll in the flood fury touched 126 in the state.

The jail administration in Khagaria evacuated over 700 prisoners, who were being shifted to the jails in Bhagalpur and Begusarai.

About 15 lakh people were still marooned, and several government offices, court campus, Doordarshan relay centre and subdivisional jail campus remain inundated. About 250 prisoners were shifted to the first floor of the jail building.

Air Force helicoptors were airdropping the relief materials in the flood-affected areas of the state.

The Disaster Management department informed that about one crore 38 lakh people of 164 blocks in about 5000 villages had been affected by the flood and 820 relief camps set up in the affected areas.

A 117-year old bridge collapsed as rain lashed isolated areas in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh but eluded Haryana since last night.

The bridge over the Chakki river on the Pathankot-Dharamshala- Manali highway caved in due to the sudden rise in its water level following heavy rains in the catchment area of the Ravi river in adjoining Himachal Pradesh.

Moderate to heavy rain pounded isolated places in Punjab overnight while rains eluded Haryana leading to hot and humid weather conditions.

Monsoon rain lashed few areas in Himachal Pradesh with Pandoh turning the wettest place in the state.

Chandigarh and its adjoining areas were also lashed by showers last night.

Arunachal Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu released Rs 50 lakh as relief and rehabilitation fund for those affected by yesterday's landslide in Sherjong village under Tawang district.

Altogether 51 houses had damaged and four members of a family were killed in the landslide.

In Delhi there was some respite from the hot and humid conditions with the mercury in the Capital dropping to 35 degrees Celsius.

Intermittent rains continued to lash parts of South Mumbai while the northern suburbs remained almost dry.

With the South-West monsoon being active over Kerala rain occurred in many places in Lakshadweep, local weather office said here.

According to the met department, heavy to very heavy rains are likely to occur at most places in Gujarat, while heavy rains are likely to occur at most places in Konkan, Goa, coastal Karnataka, and Kerala.

UNI