New Delhi: Delhi and its surrounding areas woke up to a wet morning on Wednesday as heavy to moderate showers lashed the region. Noida and Ghaziabad too received rainfall. The weather office had forecasted only light to moderate rain. Many bikers had to take cover under trees and bridges. The city has been facing waterlogging and flooding issues in many places due to the continuous downpour in the previous days. The swelling Yamuna river has also added to the woes of the residents. The water level of the river has reached alarming levels, creating a flood-like situation in the capital and nearby regions.
The Yamuna river is still dangerously close to the danger mark in Delhi. On Tuesday night at 10:00 pm, the water level near the old Yamuna Bridge was 205.24 metres, just 0.09 metres below the danger mark of 205.33 metres. It was 205.32 metres at 7:00 pm.
The river had crossed the danger mark at 5:00 pm on July 10 after heavy rainfall in Delhi and upstream areas. It had touched a record high of 208.66 metres on July 13.
The main reason for the rise in Yamuna’s water level is the release of water from the Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana’s Yamunanagar, which receives water from Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.
Many low-lying areas in Delhi have been struggling with waterlogging and flooding due to the high water level of the Yamuna.
The Yamuna had started receding after July 13, but there have been slight fluctuations in the water level in the last few days. The water level went below the danger mark at 8 pm on July 18, but it remained above it for eight days.
Delhi Jal Board Vice-Chairman Saurabh Bharadwaj visited the Wazirabad Water Treatment Plant (WTP) on Sunday and said that the Delhi government has taken steps to protect the water treatment plants from flood water by building embankments and reinforcements at vulnerable spots.
Home Minister Amit Shah also spoke to Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena on Sunday and discussed with him the situation of the Yamuna river in Delhi.
Bureau Report
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