Heavy rain batters Gujarat, release of water from Narmada dam causes flooding; hundreds shifted
Heavy rain lashed several parts of Gujarat on Sunday, flooding low-lying areas and cutting off several villages as Narmada and other rivers are in full spate, prompting shifting of hundreds of people to safer places, officials said. Several areas in Ahmedabad were waterlogged after the city received 76 mm of rainfall in 12 hours ending at 6 pm on Sunday, throwing the normal life out of gear.
Authorities blocked underpasses for traffic as a precautionary measure.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for Panchmahal, Dahod, Kheda, Aravalli, Mahisagar, Banaskantha and Sabarkantha districts predicting isolated extremely heavy rainfall till Tuesday morning. It has also warned of isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall in Gujarat in its forecast till Thursday morning.
The release of massive amounts of water from Sardar Sarovar dam (SSD), which touched its full reservoir level of 138.68 metres on Sunday morning, in the Narmada river due to heavy rains in the catchment areas in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh caused massive flooding in low-lying areas in Narmada district.
Around 1,500 people were shifted to safer places from 28 affected villages, including those located near the world's tallest monument the Statue of Unity in Narmada district, officials said.
As the Narmada river is in spate after the heavy discharge of water from the dam, parts of Vadodara and Bharuch districts near the river banks were flooded, they said, adding that the situation is being monitored closely to ensure the safety of the affected people.
Apart from Narmada, rain-fed rivers such as Orsang, Heran, Mahi, Meshri and Panam are swollen due to heavy rain coupled with the release of water from various dams, resulting in the
