Prayagraj Faces Flood Threat After Heavy Rainfall; Houses Submerged Under Water, Thousands Displaced

Incessant rains have brought the ancient city of Prayagraj, formerly Allahabad, to a standstill. The heavy downpour has caused an increased in water level of river Ganga.

This has led to a flood-like situation at Sangam Ghat with houses near the river submerged in water.

Reports suggest that thousands of people have been displaced from the adjoining areas and have been moved to safer places.

Prayagraj: Normal life gets affected at Sangam after water level of river Ganga increases following heavy rainfall. pic.twitter.com/O32mJnH1FM

¡ª ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) July 13, 2019

"We have to move to some other place as the water level in the river is rising at a very fast pace," Sharad Tiwari, a city resident, told ANI.

Another resident told that they are facing a lot of problems due to shifting to some other place.

AP

Not just Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, parts of Uttarakhand are affected due to swelling up of Ganga. In Rishikesh, Ganga rose to a dangerous mark of 338.5 metres.

With Indian Meteorological Department predicting more rainfall in the next few days, the situation is only going to worsen in low-lying areas.

The Brahmaputra in Assam is flowing above the danger mark, affecting more than eight lakh people in 21 out of 33 districts. The Brahmaputra river, one of the largest in the world that cuts through the state's biggest city Guwahati, and five others are flowing above the danger mark, officials have said.

Six people have died so far due to flood.

afp

Officials told NDTV that more than 27,000 hectares of farmland is under floodwater and more than 7,000 people have been evacuated to 68 relief camps across Assam.

More than 85,000 people are seeking shelter in Barpeta, the worst-affected of all.

Floodwaters have also entered Kaziranga National Park ¨C home of the endangered one-horned rhinoceros ¨C forcing animals to take shelter on platforms constructed for their safety.