New Delhi: As the water stage of the Yamuna in Delhi breached the all-time document of 207.49 metres set 45 years in the past, specialists attributed the state of affairs to the encroachment of floodplains, excessive rainfall in a brief period, and the buildup of silt, which elevated the riverbed. At 1 pm, the river swelled to 207.55 metres, surpassing the earlier document set in 1978, and inflicting additional inundation of areas close to the floodplains.
Thousands of individuals have been shifted to safer areas as water gushed into their properties and markets close to the river.
In view of the grave state of affairs, the Delhi Police imposed prohibitory measures underneath CrPC part 144 in flood-prone areas of town, stopping illegal meeting of 4 or extra individuals and public motion in teams.
A senior official on the Central Water Commission (CWC) stated, “We noticed that the water released from the Hathnikund Barrage took less time to reach Delhi compared to previous years. The main reason could be encroachment and siltation. Earlier, the water would have had more space to flow. Now, it passes through a constricted cross-section.”
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The water from the barrage at Yamunanagar in Haryana, round 180 kilometres from the nationwide capital, takes round two to a few days to succeed in Delhi.
Manu Bhatnagar, Principal Director of the Natural Heritage Division on the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), recognized excessive rainfall in a brief period as the first purpose for the raging Yamuna in Delhi.
“The same amount of water falling over a longer period of time would not lead to such a situation, as it allows time for the water to pass through. Even a lesser amount of precipitation can result in a higher level downstream if it falls in a shorter period of time,” he defined.
Country consultant of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Yashveer Bhatnagar, attributed the document water stage within the Yamuna to intense rainfall in your entire higher catchment space. He stated,
“Encroachment of the floodplains may have an incremental effect.”
Bhim Singh Rawat, affiliate coordinator of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers, People (SANDRP), stated a serious purpose for the unprecedented rise within the Yamuna’s water stage is the riverbed’s elevation because of vital silt accumulation.
“More than 20 bridges within the 22-km river stretch from Wazirabad to Okhla obstruct the flow, leading to the deposition of silt in the riverbed and the formation of numerous mid-stream sandbars,” he informed PTI.
The areas of those sandbars embody beneath the Signature Bridge, between the ITO barrage and Yamunabank, between ISBT Kashmiri Gate and ORB (Old Railway Bridge), and between ORB and Geeta Colony Bridge.
In 1978, the river reached a peak of 207.49 metres in September after changing into saturated within the monsoon season and it coincided with a move charge exceeding 7 lakh cusecs from the Tajewala Barrage, Rawat stated.
The most move charge this time was 3.59 lakh cusec on Tuesday.
Major floods in Delhi occurred in 1924, 1977, 1978, 1995, 2010 and 2013.
Analysis of flood information from 1963 to 2010 signifies an growing pattern for floods occurring in September, and a reducing pattern in July, in keeping with analysis.
An official of the Delhi Irrigation and Flood Control Department defined that the sharp rise in water stage was because of steady rainfall within the higher catchment areas and saturated soil from heavy precipitation in Delhi and close by areas over the weekend.
People dwelling in low-lying areas have been shifted to safer locations at increased altitudes, the division stated.
It stated 45 boats have been deployed for consciousness, evacuation and rescue work and NGOs have been roped in to supply reduction to the evacuated individuals.
“The Old Railway Bridge has been closed for traffic. All gates of the Okhla Barrage have been opened to release excess water and prevent prolonged high water levels,” the division stated.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal urged the Centre to intervene to make sure that ranges of the Yamuna do not rise additional.
In a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, he requested that “if possible the water from Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana be released in limited speed” and identified that Delhi is ready to host the G-20 Summit assembly in a number of weeks.
“The news of flooding in the capital of the country will not send a good message to the world. Together we will have to save the people of Delhi from this situation,” Kejriwal stated.
The swelling of the Yamuna river led to waterlogging within the Delhi Transport Corporation headquarters space close to ITO. Its staff waded by the waterlogged entrance to get into the workplace on Wednesday.
In northeast Delhi’s Gandhi Mendu and Usmanpur villages, flood water has risen to over 4 ft, native MLA Ajay Mahawar stated, including that the residents have already been moved to security.
According to the CWC, the move charge on the Hathnikund Barrage elevated to three,59,760 cusecs at 11 am on Tuesday, the best within the final three days. It oscillated between 1 lakh cusec and three lakh cusec on Wednesday.
Normally, the move charge on the barrage is 352 cusecs, however heavy rainfall within the catchment areas will increase the discharge. One cusec is equal to twenty-eight.32 litres per second.
The India Meteorological Department predicted heavy rain in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh over the following two days, elevating considerations a few additional rise within the water stage in rivers.
Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana recorded “heavy to extremely heavy” rains over three days from Saturday. This resulted in overflowing rivers, creeks and drains which have massively broken infrastructure and disrupted important providers.
Delhi witnessed its highest rainfall (153 mm) in a single day in July since 1982 within the 24-hour interval ending at 8:30 am on Sunday. The metropolis acquired a further 107 mm of rain within the subsequent 24 hours, exacerbating the state of affairs. The heavy rain reworked roads into gushing streams, parks into watery labyrinths and marketplaces into submerged realms.
The Yamuna river system’s catchment covers elements of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.
The low-lying areas close to the river in Delhi, inhabited by round 41,000 individuals, are thought of liable to flooding. Encroachments on the river floodplain have occurred over time, regardless of the land belonging to the Delhi Development Authority, the income division and personal people.
The Yamuna breached the hazard mark twice in September final 12 months, with the water stage reaching 206.38 metres.
In 2019, the river witnessed a peak move charge of 8.28 lakh cusecs on August 18-19 and the water stage rose to 206.6 metres. In 2013, it reached a stage of 207.32 metres.
