IMD issues heavy rain alert for Mumbai, neighbouring areas

Mumbai: Several districts in Maharashtra are reeling under floods due to incessant rains. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has also issued an orange alert for Mumbai and Thane districts and a red alert for the Palghar district.

The IMD stated that heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places were very likely in Mumbai and Thane on Thursday. “Heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places with extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places were very likely in Palghar,” said the IMD’s latest weather bulletin.

Life in the eastern Vidarbha region has been heavily affected as districts like Bhandara, Gondia, Gadchiroli, Chandrapur, Yawatmal, Vardha, Nagpur received heavy rainfall.

In Bhandara district, Wainganga River is flowing above the danger mark and the district administration has issued an alert to the people living along the riverside. The Kardha bridge and several other small bridges went under water and closed for vehicular traffic.

All 33 gates of the Gosekhurd dam project in Bhandara have been opened, which threatened the villages on the river banks of flooding. Several villages in the district have been cut off by the floods.

Life in Gadchiroli has come to a standstill as many villages have been isolated. Major four national highways on Gadchiroli-Chamorshi, Gadchiroli-Nagpur, Ashti-Alapalli, and Alapalli-Bhamragad have been closed. Besides 12 roads in the district have also been closed for vehicular traffic. The district is facing a shortage of essential commodities like milk, vegetables, bread etc as the supply has been cut off.

In Chandrapur, all seven gates of the Irai dam have been opened, whereas all 13 gates of Pujaritola dam and seven gates of Sirpur dam have been opened in Gondia district. Gates of Kalisarar dam are also expected to be opened soon, raising the possibility of Bagh river getting flooded.

In Western Maharashtra, the Panchganga River is flowing just four meters below the danger mark of 43 feet in Kolhapur district. Traffic on Kolhapur-Ratnagiri, Kolhapur-Gaganbawda Highway has been closed. The highway towards Pune and Bengaluru has also been closed for vehicular traffic. The water level of the Radhanagari dam in the district has gone up to 92 per cent.

The water level in Krishna River in Sangli is also rising due to which the district administration is on alert mode. Heavy rains in the catchment areas of the Krishna river have also increased the inflow into the Almatti dam (in north Karnataka).

In Pune district, water is being released at the rate of 9,400 cusec from the Khadakwasla dam following heavy rainfall in the catchment areas. The district administration has cautioned people living in the low-lying areas to remain alert.

In Raigad district of the Konkan region, the Kundalika River is flowing above the danger mark and the villagers on the banks of the river have been shifted to safer locations.