900 prisoners to be shifted as flood waters enter Ballia district jail

Ballia, Sep 30: Floodwaters have entered the barracks of the district jail located near the River Ganga here, prompting authorities to shift 900 prisoners, a senior official said on Monday.

Heavy rains have battered many areas of Uttar Pradesh and led to flooding in low-lying areas. Of the 900 prisoners, 500 are being shifted to Azamgarh Jail and remaining to Ambedkarnagar, Additional District Magistrate, Ballia, Ram Asrey said.

The ADM said the jail is near the River Ganga which has been in spate and it is not possible to pump out water. Rains have severely hit life in Baria Tehsil area where an ashram in Keharpur village has been submerged while a population of one lakh in about 15 villages is totally affected, SDM Dushyant Kumar Maurya said.

A release from the North-Eastern Railway said traffic on the Ballia-Chappra route has been hit after tracks were damaged and repair work was on in full swing. PRO, Mahesh Gupta, said rail tracks were damaged early on Sunday morning and the repair work is going on in full swing.

About 20 trains on the Ballia-Chappra route have been canceled while the route of 20 others has been changed, the PRO added.