Lucknow: Incessant rains have wreaked havoc across several districts of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, causing widespread devastation, severe flooding, and tragic loss of life. Over the past 48 hours, 68 people have died in rain-related incidents, according to state officials.
The relentless downpour, coupled with rising water levels in major rivers, has resulted in flooding across 16 districts. “The situation has been exacerbated by heavy rains in the Himalayan foothills of Uttarakhand, adding to the misery,” a government official stated.
A report from the relief commissioner’s office detailed the fatalities: 51 people died due to lightning strikes in 10 districts, 13 drowned in four districts, and four succumbed to snake bites in two districts. The lightning-related deaths were distributed as follows: 16 in Pratapgarh, nine in Sultanpur, eight each in Fatehpur and Chandauli, four in Prayagraj, two in Hamirpur, and one each in Unnao, Amethi, Etawah, and Sonbhadra.
The drowning victims included four each in Fatehpur and Pratapgarh, three in Etah, and two in Banda district. The snake bite fatalities were reported in Amethi and Sonbhadra districts.
Flooding has severely impacted the districts of Gonda, Balrampur, Shravasti, Kushinagar, Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri, Basti, Shahjahanpur, Barabanki, Sitapur, Siddharthnagar, Ballia, Gorakhpur, Bareilly, Moradabad, and Azamgarh. The deluge has affected 1,800,335 people living in 923 villages across the state, according to the relief commissioner’s office.
Emergency response teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have relocated 10,996 people to safer locations. The flooding has also submerged 191,515 hectares of agricultural land, compounding the disaster’s impact on local communities.
Villagers trapped in flood-hit areas have been evacuated to shelters. Several key rivers are flowing above the danger mark, including the Sharda in Lakhimpur Kheri, the Ghaghara in Barabanki, Ayodhya, and Ballia, the Rapti in Gorakhpur, the Budhi Rapti in Siddharthnagar, and the Kuwano in Gonda district.
Authorities remain on high alert, continuously monitoring the situation and providing relief and support to affected communities. Efforts to mitigate the disaster and assist those impacted by the flooding are ongoing.
“We are doing everything in our power to provide immediate relief and ensure the safety of our citizens. The situation is being closely monitored, and all necessary measures are being taken,” an official stated.