Gujarat rain: Torrential rainfall hits Gujarat, people in low-lying areas of Vadodara, Bharuch, Narmada shifted to safer places

Bharuch, September 18: Bharuch and several other districts in Gujarat are witnessing heavy rainfall since Sunday. At least 11,900 residents residing in low-lying areas of Vadodara, Bharuch, Narmada, Dahod, Panchmahal, Anand, and Gandhinagar have been relocated to shelter homes. Besides, 270 persons who were stranded have been successfully rescued.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Monday issued a statement mentioning ongoing efforts to clear roads obstructed by fallen trees.

Officials said over the past two days, more than 6,000 persons living along the Narmada river in Bharuch had to be shifted to safer locations as the water level reached 40 feet due to the release of water from the Sardar Sarovar Dam. While the water level has slowly receded since Monday morning, several areas in Bharuch city, Ankleshwar, and surrounding regions remain submerged, with water levels at knee-deep.

At present, the Narmada river's water level stands at 37.72 feet, nearly 10 feet above the danger mark of 28 feet at the Golden Bridge connecting Ankleshwar to Bharuch, as reported by an official from the Bharuch District Emergency Response Centre (BDERC). On Sunday, the river's water level had surged to 40 feet at the bridge due to the substantial discharge from the Sardar Sarovar Dam upstream.

Efforts to improve the situation are underway, with Dandiya Bazaar and other parts of Bharuch city, as well as various societies and villages in Ankleshwar city and taluka, gradually seeing water levels recede.

Given heavy rainfall across Gujarat, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has maintained constant communication with district collectors. Relief and rescue operations are being conducted with the assistance of 10 teams from both the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF). In total, nearly 11,900 individuals residing in low-lying areas of Vadodara, Bharuch, Narmada, Dahod, Panchmahal, Anand, and Gandhinagar districts have been relocated to shelter homes. Additionally, efforts are underway to clear roads blocked by fallen trees.

The Army also played a crucial role in rescuing 12 persons who were stranded on a small island in the Narmada river in Vadodara district. This operation took 48 hours to complete, and all 12 individuals, including women and children, were safely brought to the shore on Monday morning using boats.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported "extremely heavy rainfall" in isolated areas of Arvalli, Mahisagar, Panchmahal, and Sabarkantha districts during the last 24 hours ending at 8:30 am on Monday. The IMD's forecast indicates "light to moderate" rainfall in several places across Gujarat for both Monday and Tuesday.

According to data from the State Emergency Operations Centre, 29 tehsils received more than 40 mm of rainfall between 6 am and 2 pm on Monday. Notably, Visavadar taluka in Junagadh district received 283 mm of rainfall in the eight-hour period up to 2 pm. This was followed by Mendarda taluka in Junagadh (165 mm), Radhanpur in Patan (156 mm), Bhabhar in Banaskantha (144 mm), Vanthali in Junagadh (129 mm), Deodar in Banaskantha (108 mm), Deesa in Banaskantha (91 mm), Mehsana tehsil (91 mm), and Bagsara in Amreli district (91 mm).ara in Amreli district (91 mm).

- With inputs from agencies