Severe Flood Alert in Delhi due to Yamuna water level rising
A day after reaching a 60-year high, the Yamuna water level continued to rise in Delhi on Thursday, July 13, 2023 morning, affecting traffic on major roads of the city including near ISBT and Rajghat due to floodwaters .
According to the Central Water Commission data, the Yamuna’s water level in Delhi was 208.51 meters at 9 am on Thursday and is expected to rise to 208.75 meters by 5 pm.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a tweet, “Due to the rising water level, water has come on the roads around the Yamuna. You are requested not to go on these routes. People are being removed from the populated areas where there is water. People living there are requested to cooperate with the administration. Saving lives of people is most important. There is an appeal to all the people of Delhi to cooperate with each other in every possible way in this emergency.
Mr Kejriwal tweeted, all government and private schools are being closed in areas of Delhi where there is waterlogging.
According to officials, traffic on a carriageway of Outer Ring Road near Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT) Kashmere Gate has been affected due to flood water.
Traffic is affected on the Ring Road from Rajghat to ITO and there is waterlogging near ITO traffic intersection. According to the Delhi Police, there is waterlogging in many areas near the Civil Lines as well.
Traffic movement has been disrupted on the Outer Ring Road between Wazirabad Bridge and Chandgi Ram Akhara and commuters have been advised to avoid the road. The same is the case on Mahatma Gandhi Marg between IP flyover and Chandgi Ram Akhara and Mahatma Gandhi Marg between Kalighat Temple and Delhi Secretariat.
According to Delhi Police, traffic is closed on Bhairon Road due to water-logging of the drain near the Railway Under Bridge. On Wednesday, Mr Kejriwal had warned that there could be back flow from the Yamuna in some drains (which usually fall into the Yamuna) and this could lead to flooding of areas away from the river.
In a latest development, the Delhi Traffic Police has opened the Pragati Maidan tunnel for vehicular traffic. The Yamuna crossed the ‘danger mark’ of 205.33 meters on Monday evening and has been rising since then. According to the government, over 16,500 people were evacuated till Wednesday night.
Meanwhile, water released from Hathnikund Barrage on Yamuna in Haryana (upstream of Delhi) has increased from 1.59 lakh cusecs at 8 am on Thursday to 1.59 lakh cusecs from 1.47 lakh cusecs at 8 pm. According to the figures of the Delhi government, on Wednesday.
The water level of the Yamuna in Delhi largely depends on the amount of water released from the Hathinikund Barrage.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday urged the central government to intervene to ensure that the water level of the Yamuna in Delhi does not rise further and if possible, less water is released from the Hathinikund barrage.
Source – DH