New Delh: Four people died in Himachal Pradesh as rain continues to wreak havoc in the state, while five were swept away in Rajasthan’s Kota at a barrage after a heavy downpour caused the authorities to release water from a reservoir.
In Himachal, more than 200 roads are out of bounds for vehicular traffic, a majority of them in Mandi, while a flash flood warning has been issued for 12 districts in Jharkhand.
An individual each drowned in Kullu and Kangra districts, one died after being bitten by a snake in Bilaspur, while one was killed after falling from a height, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said.
Since the onset of monsoon on June 20, 61 people have died in the state in rain-related incidents.
In Rajasthan, Khatauli in Kota district recorded 198 mm of rain over 24 hours – the highest in the state.
Five youths were swept away in the Chambal River Monday afternoon after the water level suddenly rose following the release of water from 12 gates of the Kota Barrage.
“The identity of the five missing youths is yet to be confirmed, as the rescued individual is not in a condition to provide detailed information at this stage,” Digod Police Station SHO Purshottam Mehta said.
Due to continuous rainfall in the region, the authorities opened all 12 gates of the Kota Barrage at 11.30 am on Monday, releasing approximately 2.2692 lakh cusecs of water downstream, said Nisha Sharma, Junior Engineer at Kota Barrage.
A met department official said that a circulation system over Madhya Pradesh has intensified into a low-pressure area. Due to the system, parts of Kota, Ajmer, Jodhpur, and Udaipur divisions have seen heavy rain since Sunday.
Delhi got a decent drizzle towards the evening, lifting the heavy humid pall it had sweltered under during the day.
In Odisha, the weather department forecasted heavy rainfall in 19 of the 30 districts, as a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a well-marked system.