By ARUN PRATAP SINGH
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 29 Aug: Heavy rain has been lashing Uttarakhand since Friday morning, creating disaster-like conditions in several hilly districts. Excessive rainfall has caused significant damage in Tehri and Rudraprayag districts. According to the Meteorological Department, the rain is expected to continue its destructive spell for the next few days, with no signs of relief for Uttarakhand over the next five days.
The month of August has been quite severe for Uttarakhand and several other Himalayan states in terms of rainfall. Heavy rain has occurred from the beginning until the end of the month, and there is no hope for relief from the rain yet.
Five-Day Forecast has predicted heavy rainfall. For 30 August, the Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for rainfall in the districts of Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Dehradun, and Bageshwar, while an orange alert has been issued for Pithoragarh, Champawat, Udham Singh Nagar, Haridwar, and Uttarkashi. A yellow alert is in effect for Tehri, Pauri, Almora, and Nainital.
An orange alert has been issued for Dehradun and Bageshwar districts, while a yellow alert is in place for the remaining 11 districts for 30 and 31 August. The Met Department has issued an orange alert for Dehradun, Pithoragarh, Nainital, and Bageshwar districts for 1 September. A yellow alert has been issued for the other nine districts.
For 2 September, the Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert for rainfall in Chamoli, Bageshwar, and Dehradun, with a yellow alert for the remaining 11 districts. According to the department, a yellow alert means to be aware and keep an eye on the rainfall, while an orange alert means to be prepared for action, and a red alert means to take action.
The data released by the Meteorological Department for the last 24 hours shows that some areas and regions of the state received light to moderate rain, while some areas experienced heavy to very heavy rainfall with thunderstorms. According to the department, very heavy rainfall has been recorded at seven locations in the last 24 hours.
Rainfall recorded in past 24 hours in various locations tells that Haripur recorded 177 mm of rain, Kalsi 143.5 mm, Chakholi 142.0 mm, Kapkot 140.0 mm, Karnaprayag 135.8 mm, Ukhimath 125.00 mm, Sama 119.00 mm, Dharchula 112.4 mm, Khatima 112.0 mm, Chamoli 104.6 mm, Roshnabad 100.00 mm, Tanakpur 112.5 mm, and Koti 100.5 mm.
In the next 24 hours, very heavy rainfall is expected at isolated places in the districts of Bageshwar, Chamoli, Dehradun, and Rudraprayag, particularly in and around areas like Chakrata, Doiwala, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Sonprayag, Joshimath, Tharali, Kapkot, and Vikasnagar.
Meanwhile, the Ganga River in Rishikesh, Dehradun district, was flowing above its normal level this afternoon. At that time, the river’s level was 339.65 metres, which is 0.15 metres above its warning level of 339.5 metres and 0.85 metres below its danger level of 340.5 metres.
