Army rescues 500 people stranded in Bundi; flood conditions ease in Kota

Kota (RJ), Aug 23 (PTI) The Army was deployed to rescue nearly 500 people stranded as heavy rains caused flood conditions in Rajasthan's Bundi district.

After 400 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours, conditions in Kota's Digod tehsil improved on Saturday, where nearly 200 people have been shifted to relief camps since Friday night.

Lok Sabha Speaker and Kota-Bundi MP Om Birla toured flood-affected areas in Keshoraipatan and Kapren in Bundi district. After taking note of the situation, he issued directions for rehabilitation of the flood-affected people.

Kota collector Peeyush Samariya said the flood conditions in Digod tehsil have improved on Saturday and the situation is under control. On Friday, villages in the area were inundated after the region recorded 300-400 mm rainfall in the evening. A column of Army was deployed with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), he added.

Nearly 200 people from Nimodaharji and nearby villages in Digod tehsil have been shifted to relief camps since Friday evening, and adequate arrangements for food and medical treatment have been made for the people, Samariya said.

Rescue operation from Digod area is over, and the Army has been relinquished.

No loss of life due to rain-related incidents has been reported so far; however, several houses collapsed due to rain, the collector said.

Digod Sub-Divisional Magistrate Deepak Mahavar said that water level is down in the area, and the situation is returning to normalcy.

In Bundi's Nainwan, Kapren, Keshoraipatan and Raithal blocks, flood conditions worsened on Saturday after the region experienced 500 mm rainfall in the last 24 hours, prompting the district authorities to call the Army on Friday night to rescue stranded villagers.

Keshoraipatan recorded 522 mm of rainfall, Nainwan 502 mm, and Raithal 250 mm in 12 hours on Friday.

Bundi District Collector Akshay Godara said that rain caused flooding, but the district did not experience rain later in the day on Saturday, which improved the situation slightly.

Amid flood conditions, one column of Army was deployed to Nainwan on Friday night, and another to Keshoraipatan on Saturday, while one column is under movement for emergency, he added.

Army, NDRF and SDRF have jointly rescued around 500 people stranded from the inundated villages in Nainwan, Keshoraipatan, Kapren and Raithal areas, and they have been moved to relief camps, Godara said.

The district reported two rain-related deaths and the collapse of several houses.

Kailshibai (50), a resident of Dablana village, died after being swept away by the strong currents of an overflowing brook. The incident occurred on Saturday morning when the woman was heading to collect fodder for the cattle. The police handed over the body to the deceased's family later in the day after a post-mortem.

Similarly, Manbharbai (65) died after one of the walls of a tin shed collapsed over her in an agricultural field in Khedimafi village.

Indergarh Circle inspector Ramlal said the incident occurred on Friday night while the woman was asleep inside the tin shed.

A Bolero vehicle, carrying around seven people, was also flooded in an overflowing brook in Bhavpura village in Bundi on Saturday. However, the rescue teams and villagers rescued all the seven.

Ladpura BJP MLA Kalpna Devi took a boat to tour the water-filled colonies in Borekheda and Deolia Arab road.

Heavy flow of rainwater over the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway forced traffic on both ends to halt at Karadiya, resulting in a long queue of vehicles on the Expressway. PTI COR ANM ANM RUK RUK