NEW DELHI: Heavy rains over the weekend caused widespread flooding across Gujarat, blocking state highways and village roads, the continuous downpour over the past 48 hours inundated low-lying areas, disrupted daily life and hindered traffic flow, officials said.
Several hundred people were evacuated and moved to safer locations from the districts of Valsad and Navsari as heavy rainfall battered southern Gujarat on Saturday and Sunday, officials added.
Recorded highest rainfall
According to the State Emergency Operation Centre, Vapi taluka in Valsad district experienced the highest rainfall in Gujarat, with 326 millimeters recorded in a 24-hour period until 6 am on Sunday. Khergam in Navsari also received significant rainfall, measuring 248 mm since 6 am.
The heavy rains have severely impacted several districts, including Valsad, Surat, Tapi, Navsari and Narmada, as per official reports. As a precautionary measure, over 600 individuals living in low-lying areas of Valsad were evacuated to safer locations due to the heavy downpour.
Directed to take necessary steps ensuring safety
Chief minister Bhupendra Patel, in telephonic conversations with district collectors from the rain-affected areas, directed them to take all necessary steps to provide relief to residents, including timely evacuations and ensuring the safety of livestock.
The chief minister said that State and National Disaster Response Forces (SDRF and NDRF) teams were deployed and ready to assist as needed. Due to ongoing rainfall in the catchment areas, the water level of the Sardar Sarovar Narmada dam rose sharply, reaching 135.30 meters on Sunday, just a few meters below its full capacity of 138.68 meters, officials reported.
Executive Magistrate (Disaster), Navsari AM Gamit said: “A total of 17 persons were shifted to Bilimora city after flooding in low-lying areas. The administration is also keeping a close watch on rising water levels of Purna and Kaveri rivers.”
Reservoirs on high alert
According to SSNNL officials, the dam reservoir was receiving 2,65,748 cusecs of water from upstream, leading to the opening of 15 radial gates to manage the discharge.
“While 1,75,000 cusecs water was flowing out through the gates, 36,975 cusecs water was being released into the river from the riverbed powerhouse and 23,081 cusecs from canal head powerhouse,” an SSNNL official added.
As of Sunday, Gujarat’s 206 reservoirs contained a total of 3.64 lakh million cubic feet of water, which accounts for 65 percent of their overall storage capacity, according to officials. Among these reservoirs, 72 were put on high alert, while 15 were put on alert due to a significant increase in their water levels.
Average annual rainfall so far
This season, Gujarat has received 81.81 per cent of its average annual rainfall. The southern region of the state has received 97.52 per cent, followed by Kutch at 90.18 per cent and Saurashtra at 84.92 per cent.
However, data from the SEOC indicates that the northern and east-central regions of Gujarat have experienced lower rainfall compared to the southern part and Saurashtra-Kutch, while north Gujarat has received 64.91 percent of its average annual rainfall so far, while east-central Gujarat has recorded 68.84 percent.
IMD predicted heavy rainfall, red alerts
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted intense rainfall in several regions of Gujarat until Tuesday morning. According to the forecast, districts in south Gujarat, including Vadodara, Surat, Bharuch, Navsari, and Valsad, along with Amreli and Bhavnagar in the Saurashtra region, are expected to experience ‘heavy to very heavy’ rain, with isolated ‘extremely heavy’ rain.
Furthermore, the IMD has also forecasted ‘heavy to very heavy’ rain accompanied by isolated ‘extremely heavy’ rain in the districts of Anand, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Porbandar, Morbi, Dwarka, and Kutch on Tuesday.
IMD had issued a red alert, cautioning that “extremely heavy rainfall may occur” in the state on Sunday.
In addition to Gujarat, the IMD has also issued red alerts for various other regions across the country. These include East Rajasthan, West Madhya Pradesh, Konkan and Goa, Central Maharashtra, and the North-Eastern states of Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, and Tripura.
Several hundred people were evacuated and moved to safer locations from the districts of Valsad and Navsari as heavy rainfall battered southern Gujarat on Saturday and Sunday, officials added.
Recorded highest rainfall
According to the State Emergency Operation Centre, Vapi taluka in Valsad district experienced the highest rainfall in Gujarat, with 326 millimeters recorded in a 24-hour period until 6 am on Sunday. Khergam in Navsari also received significant rainfall, measuring 248 mm since 6 am.
The heavy rains have severely impacted several districts, including Valsad, Surat, Tapi, Navsari and Narmada, as per official reports. As a precautionary measure, over 600 individuals living in low-lying areas of Valsad were evacuated to safer locations due to the heavy downpour.
Directed to take necessary steps ensuring safety
Chief minister Bhupendra Patel, in telephonic conversations with district collectors from the rain-affected areas, directed them to take all necessary steps to provide relief to residents, including timely evacuations and ensuring the safety of livestock.
The chief minister said that State and National Disaster Response Forces (SDRF and NDRF) teams were deployed and ready to assist as needed. Due to ongoing rainfall in the catchment areas, the water level of the Sardar Sarovar Narmada dam rose sharply, reaching 135.30 meters on Sunday, just a few meters below its full capacity of 138.68 meters, officials reported.
Executive Magistrate (Disaster), Navsari AM Gamit said: “A total of 17 persons were shifted to Bilimora city after flooding in low-lying areas. The administration is also keeping a close watch on rising water levels of Purna and Kaveri rivers.”
Reservoirs on high alert
According to SSNNL officials, the dam reservoir was receiving 2,65,748 cusecs of water from upstream, leading to the opening of 15 radial gates to manage the discharge.
“While 1,75,000 cusecs water was flowing out through the gates, 36,975 cusecs water was being released into the river from the riverbed powerhouse and 23,081 cusecs from canal head powerhouse,” an SSNNL official added.
As of Sunday, Gujarat’s 206 reservoirs contained a total of 3.64 lakh million cubic feet of water, which accounts for 65 percent of their overall storage capacity, according to officials. Among these reservoirs, 72 were put on high alert, while 15 were put on alert due to a significant increase in their water levels.
Average annual rainfall so far
This season, Gujarat has received 81.81 per cent of its average annual rainfall. The southern region of the state has received 97.52 per cent, followed by Kutch at 90.18 per cent and Saurashtra at 84.92 per cent.
However, data from the SEOC indicates that the northern and east-central regions of Gujarat have experienced lower rainfall compared to the southern part and Saurashtra-Kutch, while north Gujarat has received 64.91 percent of its average annual rainfall so far, while east-central Gujarat has recorded 68.84 percent.
IMD predicted heavy rainfall, red alerts
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted intense rainfall in several regions of Gujarat until Tuesday morning. According to the forecast, districts in south Gujarat, including Vadodara, Surat, Bharuch, Navsari, and Valsad, along with Amreli and Bhavnagar in the Saurashtra region, are expected to experience ‘heavy to very heavy’ rain, with isolated ‘extremely heavy’ rain.
Furthermore, the IMD has also forecasted ‘heavy to very heavy’ rain accompanied by isolated ‘extremely heavy’ rain in the districts of Anand, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Porbandar, Morbi, Dwarka, and Kutch on Tuesday.
IMD had issued a red alert, cautioning that “extremely heavy rainfall may occur” in the state on Sunday.
In addition to Gujarat, the IMD has also issued red alerts for various other regions across the country. These include East Rajasthan, West Madhya Pradesh, Konkan and Goa, Central Maharashtra, and the North-Eastern states of Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, and Tripura.
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