Rajasthan: 4 minors among 5 drowned in heavy rains

Jaipur, Aug 2: Five persons, including four teenage boys, have drowned in different parts of Rajasthan which was lashed by heavy rains.

The South-West monsoon shifted its centre over Bikaner division in the last 24 hours as Karanpur city recorded 5 cm of rainfall till 8:30 am today, the maximum in the state, officials said.

At least a dozen villages remained inundated in Sanchore tehsil due to incessant rains, which reduced since Friday, officials said.

A Sirohi district official said the Abu-Road and Mount Abu (hill station) road, which was damaged by shooting stones due to heavy rains, was still under repair and traffic was not allowed on the route yet.

The civil administration has pressed 25 rescue and relief teams into action in Sanchor and Bheenmal tehsils, covering a dozen of villages, the official said.

Two minor boys -- Mahaveer Singh (12) and Girdhari (14) -- drowned when they went to take bath in a pond which was swelled up due to rains at Dulmera-station village in Bikaner district yesterday, the Lunkaransar police said today.

The bodies were fished out and handed over to their parents after postmortem, the police said. Two more boys, identified as Valegopal and Sushil, were reportedly drowned in Luni river near Samdadi town of Jodhpur district last evening, officials said, adding that divers were searching for both since last night.

The fifth victim, 35-year-old Bhema Ram, slipped into an overflowing pond yesterday when he went there to observe the water level in Dantiya village in Sirohi district, a district official said.

Meanwhile, Samdari-Bhilwari rail route was still non-operational after gravel and mud beneath the rail track was washed away due to heavy rains which damaged the track at various sections, an NWR spokesman said.

One of the major rivers in Rajasthan, Luni river or Maru Ganga, revived after over ten years due to heavy rainfall in the region, as thousands thronged the area to worship the river, the official said.

Ghadsana, Sangaru each recorded 4 cms of rainfall, followed by Fatehpur and Rajgarh 3 cms, Baran 2 cms, Banswara and Taranagar 1 cms each. Low to moderate rains also occurred in Jaipur and Ajmer districts in the last 24 hours.

There was no rains in western regions of Rajasthan which includes Jodhpur, Barmer, Jaisalmer, Churu, Jalore and Sirohi districts. Moderate rains is likely to occur in Bikaner division in the next 24 hours, a forecast said.

PTI