Rains to pound Jharkhand till Wednesday

Heavy rainfall across Jharkhand over the last three days has hit normal life. The Met Office has forecast more rain till Wednesday.

This has, however, brought cheer to the farmers as it has expedited the sowing process.

Starting Friday, the state has witnessed rainfall between 60 to 130 mm, the weather office said.

According to Met department official the rainfall was due to a low pressure region that has developed over the Bay of Bengal which has created a cyclonic circulation.

The official said that the cyclonic trough was passing over the state and its impact would be felt for the next couple of days.

Rain water has flooded the low-lying areas and has entered into houses.

The situation was the worst in Ramgarh and Jamshedpur districts.

The heavy downpour has washed away a diversion on the Kapagora river in Ghatshila district. As a result, the vehicles plying to Odisha and West Bengal were stranded. This caused an almost 30-km long traffic snarl.

The water-level of Kharkhai and Suwrnarekha rivers have also touched the danger mark.

In Ranchi, there was water-logging in many areas, including M.G. Road, Kutchury Road and Madhukam.

In Sonahatu here, many houses collapsed due to rain causing people to live under the open sky.

"Our house collapsed on Sunday. We have not received any support from government. We are forced to live under open sky in this rain," said Sumit Mandal.

In some districts, water was flowing above the bridges. There has been many incidents of trees uprooting.

One person was injured in Hazaribagh when a tree fell upon him. In Ramgarh, water was flowing over the Senay Gada bridge disrupting the movement of vehicles.

In Jamshedpur, the district administration have issued advisory to people living in low lying areas.

The continuous rainfall has, however, brought cheers to farmers.

The sowing of paddy gained momentum as Jharkhand had witnessed only 30 per cent sowing this year due to a rain shortfall.

Till July 20, Jharkhand had witnessed a shortfall of 30 to 40 per cent in comparison to previous years.

--IANS

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