Rain cripples life in MP, Assam and Maha; 12 dead

Incessant monsoon rain wreaked havoc in several states on Monday, killing seven persons in Madhya Pradesh, four in Maharashtra and one in Assam.

The northern states, however, witnessed fluctuating monsoon with heavy rain lashing some parts of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, Delhi getting mild showers and Haryana and Punjab experiencing dry weather conditions.

Madhya Pradesh has reported seven more flood-related deaths since Sunday. So far, 22 people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents in the state.

Five persons each died in Bhopal and Jabalpur and three in Vidisha. One each was killed in Raisen, Rewa, Sagar, Mandla, Tikamgarh, Seoni, Damoh, Sehore and Agar-Malwa districts, an official of the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

Government agencies, carrying out relief and rescue operations, have escorted 7,000 people out of flood-hit areas.

The MeT office said heavy rain was likely in Guna, Neemuch, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Ujjain, Shajapur, Rajgarh, Sehore, Agar-Malwa, Bhopal, Indore, Raisen, Jhabua, Alirajpur, Hoshangabad, Harda, Dhar, Khargone, Khandwa, Shivpuri and Sheopur districts tomorrow.

Meanwhile, four persons were killed and as many injured in incidents of house collapse due to heavy downpour in Maharashtra’s Nandurbar district that has received 390 mm of rain since Sunday.

Nashik was battered by incessant rain and received a whopping 1,899 mm of precipitation. Due to the downpour, the water level in the Gangapur dam, which supplies drinking water to Nashik, has risen to 47 per cent.

The Godavari river, which flows through Nashik, has crossed the danger level and many temples – located on its banks – have submerged in the raging flood water.

Heavy rain was witnessed in and around Pune in the past few days have raised the water level in the four dams that provide water to the city.

The collective water level in these four dams – Temghar, Varasgaon, Panshet and Khadakwasla – has gone up to 10.05 TMC on July 11 against 7.19 TMC, recorded in the corresponding period last year, an Irrigation Department official said.

Meanwhile, in Assam, one person was killed after being swept away by flood waters in Morigaon district, while the situation in five other districts was reported as “critical”.

Around 1.35 lakh people have been hit by the devastating flood that has destroyed embankments and roads.

The deceased belonged to Bhuragaon circle, which is facing a serious threat as the raging waters of the Brahmaputra river have eroded the rock spur of Kupatimari portion of its embankment, Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kumar said.

The situation in flood-ravaged Mayong revenue circle is also critical as 60 villages under Pokoriya and Ghagua local revenue units are inundated, affecting over 70,000 people, Kumar said, adding that mechanised boats were used to evacuate them. The six districts affected by the floods are Lakhimpur, Golaghat, Morigaon, Barpeta, Jorhat and Dhemaji. 

Meanwhile, heavy rain drenched parts of Rajasthan, leading to a slight drop in the maximum temperature. The rain, however, gave a miss to Churu that simmered at 41.3 degrees Celsius.

Two men were swept away in two flooded rivers in Baran district on Sunday. 

“Two men were swept in Gadawali and Samrania rivers in the district today. One of them is a teacher Brijmohan Meena,” said District Collector SP Singh. Rescue operation is on and efforts are on to locate them, he said.

Uttar Pradesh also witnessed heavy rain at some places, including Moradabad 13 cm, Agra 10cm, Jalesar 8 cm, Lalitpur 6 cm and Aligarh 5 cm.

The weatherman said monsoon had turned weak in Punjab and Haryana. The states have been experiencing dry weather conditions for the past 2-3 days. “The monsoon has turned weak over Punjab and Haryana. However, it is likely to gain momentum July 13 onwards,” a MeT department official said.

With the rain playing truant, residents in the state reeled under high humidity that shot up to 85 per cent.