Rain, flash floods upend lives in India; blocked roads slow down relief efforts

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) Raging waters swallowed roads and bridges, swept away buildings and cut off villages in parts of India on Thursday as the rain gods refused to relent, leaving many stranded and rescuers scrambling to reach them.

From Himachal Pradesh in the north to Kerala in the south, rains caused water levels of rivers and dams to rise and inundate residential areas and agricultural fields.

Kashmir, however, breathed easy as a let-up in rain after two days eased the flood threat.

In Himachal Pradesh, flash floods in the Ravi river washed away several government buildings in the remote Bada Bangal village in Kangra district, officials said.

There was no loss of life, they said.

"A primary and high school, the panchayat ghar, an ayurvedic dispensary and a civil supplies store that housed about 70 quintals of ration were washed away in lower Bada Bangal on Tuesday. The village has been cut off from the rest of the state as two bridges were also swept away," Baijnath Sub-Divisional Magistrate Sankalp Gautam told PTI.

With the village cut off and communication a problem, the reports from the village reached authorities only on Wednesday night.

Gautam said 180 quintals of ration is being sent to the village but the roads are blocked. Essential items and medicines would be air-dropped if the need arises, he said.

The Bada Bangal village, located at an altitude of 7,800 feet, is accessible only by foot through the high-altitude Thamsar and Kalihani passes. It remains cut off from the rest of the state for four to six months during winters.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre, 536 roads are closed across 11 of the 12 districts in Himachal Pradesh. Reports from Chamba have not been received as the communication network in the district is snapped, it said.

The flood threat in Kashmir eased, with the water levels in the Jhelum river and other water bodies starting to recede as the weather improved. In the past 12 hours, there has been very little rainfall in the Kashmir Valley, officials said.

The Jhelum dropped below the flood alert level at Sangam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district. Though it is still above the danger level downstream in Srinagar, the water level has started receding, they said.

The tributaries of the river are also flowing below the flood alert level.

According to the meteorological department, a spell of light to moderate rain at scattered to fairly widespread places with a possibility of moderate to heavy rain or thundershowers in a few districts of Jammu is likely from August 30 to September 1.

From September 2 to 6, a brief spell of rain or thundershowers is expected at a few places.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said he would sit with officers in a few days to understand what flood mitigation measures were taken after the 2014 deluge and corrective measures would be taken wherever the union territory was lagging.

"There were heavy rains in both Jammu as well as in Kashmir. God saved us. Had the rainfall continued for a day or more, we would have faced immense difficulties. But the water has started receding. It recedes faster in Jammu and takes some time here in Kashmir," he said.

In Punjab, where at least eight districts have been hit by flash floods, central and state agencies worked tirelessly to evacuate people from the flooded areas.

The Amritsar district administration, with the help of the Army, evacuated several people, including children and the elderly, who were stranded in the swamped villages of the Ramdas area.

Amphibious all-terrain vehicles and boats were deployed in the area inundated by the rising waters of the Ravi river.

Officials said 1,052 people have been rescued so far from the flood-hit areas in Hoshiarpur district.

Many villages in Tanda and Mukerian sub-divisions remained inundated because of heavy inflow of water from the Beas river and rain.

The officials said 15 relief camps are being run and these house 413 people, including 280 moved in the last 16 hours. The floods have so far damaged 5,287 hectares of agricultural land in the district.

Seventeen 'kutcha' houses have collapsed, five have suffered severe damage and one was partially damaged this monsoon, they said.

The rising water level of the Ganga disrupted normal activities, including the daily 'aarti' and cremations, on the ghats of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.

After a slight drop over the past few days, the Ganga crossed the warning mark of 70.262 metres to reach 70.91 metres on Thursday morning, nearing the danger level of 71.262 metres, officials said.

In Rajasthan, waters receded in Bundi district and villagers in Nainwan, Kapren and Keshoraipatan regions were seen trying to salvage what they could from their flood-ravaged homes.

Farmers in the region have suffered heavy losses with soybean, mung, urad and maize crops completely damaged.

The respite might be short-lived as the meteorological department has predicted an increase in rainfall activity in southeast Rajasthan from August 29-30.

Heavy rain is likely at some places in Kota and Udaipur divisions. Some parts of Jodhpur and Bikaner divisions are also expected to receive moderate to heavy rain during this period, the weather office said.

In Maharashtra's Nanded and Latur districts, more than 2,200 people have been shifted to safety amid heavy rainfall, officials said.

Seventeen revenue circles in Mukhed, Kandhar and Naygaon witnessed heavy rainfall, with Biloli and Narsi areas in Nanded recording the highest rainfall at 115 mm and 29 circles in Latur recording more than 65 mm of rainfall, they said.

Rain intensified in Kerala, triggering landslides at the Thamarassery pass in Wayanad district and a rise in water levels of dams.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an 'orange' alert for six districts -- Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod.

An 'orange' alert means very heavy rain of 11 cm to 20 cm.

In Telangana, one person died when the wall of his house collapsed in Kamareddy district and five are missing after being swept away by the floodwaters, an official release said.

Heavy rains continued to lash Kamareddy, Nizamabad and Karimnagar districts. Ramareddy village in Kamareddy district received 171.3 mm of rainfall from 8.30 am to 4 pm, followed by 163.8 mm in Kaldurki in Nizamabad district, the Telangana Development Planning Society said.

South Central Railway said 69 trains were cancelled due to the submerging of tracks at different locations in the Hyderabad division.

In Karnataka's Bidar district, overnight rainfall in Aurad taluk submerged several bridges, including Dadagi bridge in Badalgaon-Chondimukhed in Bhalki taluk, stopping vehicular movement.

In Dakshina Kannada district, the administration declared a holiday on Thursday for all educational institutions as the IMD issued an 'orange' alert for heavy rainfall.

The authorities warned fishermen against venturing into the sea. PTI TEAM DIV DIV