With the water level in the Yamuna River crossing the danger mark and low-lying areas in the national Capital getting inundating, claims of timely evacuation by the authorities have fallen flat. Flood-hit residents, struggling to save their homes and belongings claimed that the authorities concerned have not visited the area.
The Pioneer team visited low-lying areas of Yamuna Bazar, Old Railway Bridge, Kudesia Ghat and Wazirabad, and saw that most of the houses were filled with water till knee level and the residents, mostly comprising daily wagers are yet to get any assistance from the authorities. The residents are unable to send their children to school due to the rising water levels.
Following incessant rains in the upper catchment areas, the water level on Tuesday flowed much above the danger mark of 205.33 metres and touched 206.40 metres at 7:00 PM. The evacuation level is 206 metres. “We do not have any place to go, as we cannot afford to rent another house,” said 45-year-old Raju, who runs a tea stall and has been living at the Yamuna Bazar for the last 30 years along with his family. “The water has entered our houses after a gap of four years. During the pandemic in 2020 and the next year, the water level was normal and we were living comfortably. Now the water has entered our homes. What were the authorities doing for the last three years when they had time to prepare a plan to mitigate floods in the houses along the banks? Raju questioned.
“Another resident of Kudesia Ghat, Bablu Kumar, a vegetable seller said that his cart is stuck in the water and there is fear of snake bites as several reptiles can be seen in the waters.“I am not able to send my children to school today as their uniforms were soiled due to the flooding in our homes. Our belongings are ruined and even the TV has been damaged by the water,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, a senior official said that teams were on the field and announcements were being made on the Public Announcement system to keep people living on the shores of the Yamuna away from the river banks. “People have been evacuated to safe places in Sub-divisions Seelampur and Karawal Nagar and Kanchan Colony besides areas under the Shahdara district,” he said.
Sushil Singh, Special Chief Executive Officer, DDMA said that a meeting was convened under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary Revenue-cum-Divisional Commissioner, Delhi Government KR Meena in which all the officials including the District Magistrate (DMs) of the five districts, DDMA officials, Irrigation and Flood Control department officers from Delhi, UP and Haryana were present.
The meeting was held to review the preparedness following the flood situation in the city.
"The Divisional Commissioner inspected the Okhla barrage, the ITO barrage and other low-lying areas in districts including, South East, East, Central, and North District with the DDMA officials and the DMs,” Singh said. “Despite the constant discharge of water from the Hathnikund Barrage, no causalities were reported due to the increased water level as all the concerned departments have been coordinating to avert the flood situation in the national Capital. The water level in the river is expected to stabilise and reduce from tonight,” he added.
