Rain worsens flood situation in Uttar Pradesh, over 21,000 evacuated
Rain lashed several places in Uttar Pradesh on Friday as authorities stepped up relief and rescue operations in flood-hit districts, with 21,350 people evacuated to safer places so far and 2,972 staying in relief camps.
The Relief Commissioner’s office said 8,000 people were shifted to safer locations on Thursday, taking the total number of people evacuated so far to 21,350.
The India Meteorological Department forecast rain or thundershowers at isolated places across the state.
The weather office forecast generally cloudy skies becoming partly cloudy in Lucknow and adjoining areas, with the maximum and minimum temperatures likely to remain around 33 and 27 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Among other places, Hardoi received 15 mm of rain, Kanpur (IAF) 13.8 mm, Aligarh 7 mm, Etawah 5 mm and Orai 3.4 mm. Jhansi recorded 22.7 mm, the highest rainfall reported in the IMD bulletin, while Banda received 18.2 mm.
The administration has so far deployed 2,385 boats and motorboats to evacuate people stranded in flood-affected areas. A total of 2,972 people are currently staying in relief camps.
The flood-affected districts include Ayodhya, Azamgarh, Bahraich, Badaun, Ballia, Barabanki, Basti, Farrukhabad, Ghazipur, Gonda, Gorakhpur, Hardoi, Kasganj, Kaushambi, Kanpur Nagar, Lakhimpur Kheri, Moradabad, Prayagraj, Raebareli, Rampur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Sitapur, Shahjahanpur, Unnao and Varanasi.
The government distributed 72,620 lunch packets and 9,937 flood relief kits on Thursday. So far, more than 9.31 lakh lunch packets and over 1.49 lakh food packets have been distributed in the affected areas.
The health department has formed 1,165 medical teams, while more than 7.22 lakh chlorine tablets and 2.97 lakh ORS packets have been distributed to prevent water-borne diseases.
No loss of life or livestock has been reported due to the floods so far, the statement said. Around 6,956 quintals of fodder has also been distributed for livestock.
The IMD said rain was very likely at isolated places over Uttar Pradesh, but issued no warning for the state.
In Lucknow, the maximum temperature was recorded at 32.2 degrees Celsius, 1.4 degrees below normal, while the minimum temperature was 26.4 degrees Celsius, 1.5 degrees above normal. The state capital received 2 mm of rainfall between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm, according to the IMD.
Ayodhya recorded the highest maximum temperature at 34.5 degrees Celsius, followed by Meerut at 34 degrees, while Muzaffarnagar and Agra recorded 33.8 degrees each. Prayagraj, Basti and Gorakhpur recorded maximum temperatures of 33 degrees, 33 degrees and 32.8 degrees, respectively.
