Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday cancelled his meetings and directed officials to take stock of the situation arising from heavy spells of rain and rising water levels in Ghaggar and Yamuna rivers.
Hundreds of villages in Yamunanagar and Karnal districts were worst affected with the release of excess water from the Hathnikund barrage, admitted officials.
The Yamuna river continued to flow above the danger mark even after the release of excess water that led to inundating houses and agriculture fields, disrupting normal life in the villages.
The villagers were seen camping on rooftops of their houses.
“All our ration and households were damaged with the flood water,” remarked Ajay Kumar, a villager on the outskirts of Karnal town.
There was no fodder for the livestock. “We were told to vacate the village, but we can’t leave our livestock in the village alone,” an aggrieved Kumar added.
More than 10,000 acres of fields have been submerged in villages in Assandh and Nilokheri blocks of Karnal.
“Due to the heavy rainfall for the past three days and the release of water from the Hathnikund barrage, fields in around 12 villages of Karnal have been inundated. However, water is still away from residential areas. No need to panic, but people should remain alert,” said Deputy Commissioner Anish Yadav.
The government has sounded a high alert in Yamunanagar, Karnal, Panipat and Sonipat districts owing to heavy rain and release of excess water from the Hathnikund barrage.
The authorities began to evacuate hundreds of people living in the Yamuna and Ghaggar catchment areas following a sharp rise in the river’s level, officials said.
Heavy rain continued to lash many parts of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, while authorities have been releasing more water at the Hathnikund barrage for the past three days.
Charing a meeting on Monday, the Chief Minister was apprised that in the past three days 493 mm of rain has been received, due to which the water level in rivers has drastically increased in Ambala district. The water level of the Ghaggar, which was 16,500 cusecs, has increased to 21,000 cusecs.
Similarly, the water level of the Tangri river has also increased to 21,000 cusecs from its natural level of 13,000 cusecs. The water level of the Markanda river is in the safe zone at 50,000 cusecs and is expected to increase in the coming days.
In Yamunanagar also, in view of the increasing water level of the Yamuna river, the process of evacuating the areas has been implemented.
The Deputy Commissioner of Kurukshetra said in 1978 the water level in the Markanda river was recorded at 256.4 metres. At present the water level is at 255 metres.
Meanwhile, the MeT Department in Chandigarh on Tuesday predicted that the hill states in Haryana’s neighbourhood will continue to experience heavy rain.
–IANS
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