Heavy rainfall batters Uttarakhand, water level in various rivers have gone up

Parts of Uttarakhand have been lashed by heavy rainfall and as a result, the water level in various rivers have gone up. According to the India Meteorological Department, the state is very likely to receive heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places in the coming 2-3 days.

Besides the IMD, various other agencies have sounded an alert for flash floods, torrential rainfall in the state for Thursday and the coming 2-3 days.

The State Disaster Management Center on Wednesday had warned about the possibility of heavy and very heavy rains in the state on Thursday. All District Magistrates have been directed to take precautionary measures in order to avoid any untoward incidents.

Central Water Commission Official Flood Forecast in a tweet said, “Flash flood guidance for next 24 hours in parts of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Eastern region of Rajasthan, Western region of Madhya Pradesh as given by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).”

Heavy and incessant rainfall in the state, coupled with landslides, led to the temporary closure of the Gangotri National Highway. The key highway has been closed for nearly 30 hours now.

A local resident said livelihoods have been impacted due to the closure of the highway. Even areas near the China border are disconnected after the heavy rainfall.

Districts across the state have been affected by torrential rainfall, landslides while rivers are in spate. River Ganga was flowing 10-cm above the warning level and its water level continues to rise.

The water level of Henwal river, a tributary of the Ganga, has also risen and families living close to it have been moved to safer places, SHO, Muni ki Reti police station, Kishor Saklani said.

The water level of Sharda Barrage in the Banbasa area of the Champawat district is constantly rising due to the rise in the level of Sharda river following incessant rainfall in the state, a barrage management official said on Wednesday.

States like Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh are also predicted to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall in the coming 2-3 days.