Flood situation improves in Bihar, UP

New Delhi, Aug 24 (UNI) With all the major rivers in Bihar and UP showing declining trend, the overall flood situation in both the states has improved considerably.

The death toll in Bihar and UP stood at 374 and 233 respectively.

In Bihar, flood situation in Kalyanpur, Hassanpur and Rosera blocks has improved as water level in Burhi Gandak, Kareh, Kosi and Bagmti rivers was on receding trend. The flood situation also improved in township areas of the district as most of localities were now free from flood water.

Water in more than 400 villages of Madhubani, Thakraha, Bhitaha and Piprasi blocks was also receding gradually bringing respite to marooned people in the affcected areas.

The flood situation in Narainpur and Kharik blocks was still grim. District Magistrate Bipin Kumar said more than 2.5 lakh people were affected in eighty villages of Bhagalpur district alone.

In UP, the rivers including Rapti, Sharda, Rohin and Ghaghra have receded considerably. At Elign Bridge and Ayodhya, river Ghaghra was at 31 cms and nine cms below the danger mark respectively. It was only at Turtipur, where it was recorded 65 cms above the red mark.

At Paliyankala and Shardanagar, river Sharda was flowing 29 cms and 69 cms below the danger mark respectively. In Bardghat, river Rapti was 40 cms below the red mark, while river Kunao was at 34 cms below the danger mark in Chandradeep Ghat.

The Southwest Monsoon has been active over Tamil Nadu, but subdued over Arunachal Pradesh, Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha.

Heavy rains have occurred at many places in Tamil Nadu, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, at a few places in Orissa, and at isolated places in west Rajasthan.

Rain or thundershowers have occurred at most places in Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, coastal Andhra Pradesh, and at many places in Himachal Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Konkan, Goa, coastal and south interior Karnataka, and at a few places in Assam and Meghalaya, Jharkhand, west Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Punjab, Gujarat, Telangana, Rayalseema, and Lakshadweep.

Rains also lashed parts of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh since last night, bringing a fall in the temperature.

Heavy rain pounded the holy city of Amritsar overnight, turning it the wettest place in Punjab, recording 50.0 mm downpour overnight, followed by Madopur measuring 20.0 mm and Shahpur Kandi registering 19.4 mm rainfall.

Several areas in Haryana were also lashed by rain overnight.

Panchkula recorded 15 mm and Kalka and Morni 11 mm each downpour till this morning, while Rohtak reported trace.

Parts of Himachal Pradesh, including the districts of Kullu, Mandi, Una and Chamba districts, were lashed by rain, dipping the temperatures in the state.

Monsoon has weakened in Rajasthan after three consecutive days of rainfall which drenched the parched desert areas of Jaisalmer and Bikaner, providing respite to the people here.

In the Capital, cool Westerly winds today continued to bring relief from hot and humid weather for the third day in succession.

Though it was another day of bright sunlit sky, with the mercury rising slightly to 35.2 degrees Celsius, the Westerlies provided respite from the hot and humid weather of earlier this week.

UNI