Rains wreak havoc in many states

New Delhi, July 20: Heavy rainfall lashed the National Capital Saturday, flooding almost all important roads in Delhi throwing the traffic out of gear even as the flood situation states of Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand etc.  remained grim on the second day today.

Traffic jams were reported in the National Capital from almost all areas due to water logging as well as non-functional traffic signals. There were also reports of water logging in the arrival lane at Indira Gandhi International Airport and flooding at some of the metro stations.

The Weatherman said that a total of 105 mm of rain has been recorded between 11:30 am till 2:30 pm. The Met office has predicted the rain to continue in the next 24 hours.

According to reports though rain gave the much needed relief to the people of Delhi from humid and muggy weather, major traffic jams were witnessed at key intersections ITO, Ring Road, Mathura Road and Dhaula Kuan.

The roads around Parliament were also waterlogged. Commuters had a hard time navigating the roads as visibility also dropped.

Pedestrians were seen wading through streets flooded by overflowing drains. Commuters were stuck at metro stations and bus stops waiting for the showers to subside.

Flood Situation in Andhra Pradesh: The flood situation in several districts of Andhra Pradesh continues to be grim for the second day today following the overflowing of streams and rivulets due to incessant rains during the last three days. The river Godavari is in spate in Khammam district where 130 villages have been marooned with flood waters.

Incessant rains continued to lash several parts of Andhra Pradesh posing threat of floods to hundreds of villages situated near the river Godavari and its tributaries.

Danger signal three has been hoisted at Bhadrachalam in Khamma district as water levels in Godavari rose to 56 meters and danger signal two has been displayed at Dhavaleswaram. Its tributaries like Sabari and Pranahita also in spate keeping the authorities on tenterhooks.

The authorities are not leaving any stone unturned to tackle with any eventuality while a total eight teams of the National Disaster Response Force and two Helicopters have been kept ready at different places to carryout rescue and relief operations.

A total 222 villages in 9 districts were affected while nearly 1900 houses damaged and crops in about 90,000 hectare inundated. The district authorities are evacuating people from low laying areas.

Trains diverted: The South Central Railway (SCR) Saturday said that some trains were diverted due to breaches in the Railway track on Nagpur-Wardha section of Central Railway.

An SCR release in Hyderabad said, trains going towards North were diverted at Wardha via Bhusawal instead of via Nagpur. The release also said trains coming from North towards SCR such as Andhra Pradesh Express, AP Sampark Kranti and Patna Expresses were running late.

Central team to assess flood damage in Kerala: A seven-member central team headed by a Joint Secretary, in the Ministry of Home Affairs, V Vumlungmang is arriving in Kochi Saturday to hold discussions with state government officials on the rain havoc in Kerala.

Later, the team will form two groups and visit the districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Kozhikode. The team is also likely to visit the state capital Thiruvananthapuram.

The state government has sought central assistance to the tune of Rs 481 crore for relief operations and payment of compensation. 131 persons have lost their lives in monsoon related incidents so far.

891 villages have been flooded and over two lakh people shifted to relief camps. 549 houses were destroyed and 9499 houses damaged. Crops in 8480 hectares worth more than Rs 150 crore were lost.

UP Terai region reels under floods: Most of the sub Himalayan Terai region of Uttar Pradesh has been reeling under flood since the past month. All the rivers are flowing either above the danger mark getting close to it.

River Sharda is above the danger mark in Paliakalan while Ghaghra is flowing above the red mark at Elgin Bridge at Barabanki, Ayodhya and Turtipar in Ballia.

The Met department has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall at many places in the next 24 hours in the state which may worsen the flood conditions here.

In the last one month, Sharda and Ghaghra have demolished more than 1000 houses in Lakhimpur Kheri and the devastation is still going on. In Bahraich, Ghaghra has eroded away 16 houses in the last 24 hours only, where nearly 600 houses have already been washed away in the floods. The relief and rescue teams are tirelessly engaged in providing help to the flood victims.

Road traffic blocked in Uttarakhand: In Uttarakhand, the Rishikesh-Gangotri national highway has been blocked at several places due to landslides and incessant rainfall in Tehri and Uttarkashi districts.

The Rishikesh-Badrinath national highway has also been blocked near Pipalkoti in Chamoli district. The Jawans of BRO have been pressed into service to clear the road.

Rishikesh-Gangotri national highway has been blocked at Tachla near Tehri, Chinyalisaud and Nalupani in Uttarkashi district. In Kumaon, munsyari region of Pithoragarh district 100 mt road was washed away by the river Gori near Badheli.

The water level of all rivers in State is on the rise. The weather department has alerted moderate to heavy rainfall in next 24 hours in some part of the hilly regions including plains.

Meanwhile, the movement of helicopters for supplying ration and other essential commodities has been affected due to poor weather conditions.