Rain takes break in Saurashtra; lashes Ahmedabad and south Guj

The Saurashtra region got a respite from incessant rains today, but many parts of south and central Gujarat, including Ahmedabad city, received heavy showers.

Normalcy was returning to Saurashtra which experienced heavy rains all through the last week, officials said.

However, schools and colleges will remain closed in Gir Somnath, Junagadh and Amreli districts tomorrow due to heavy water-logging.

Many pockets of Gir Somnath district, the worst- affected in Saurashtra region, have turned into islands, said officials, adding that the situation is improving as waters are now receding.

Rajkot Taluka Panchayat said it had given a compensation of Rs 4 lakh to the family of one Devendra Chavda who drowned in flood waters a few days ago.

As per the data released by the government, Umerpada taluka of Surat district in south Gujarat received the highest rainfall at 183 mm between 8 AM to 6 PM today.

It was followed by Ankleshwar in Bharuch district (124 mm), Sagbara in Narmada district (106 mm), Hansot in Bharuch (102 mm), Dahod taluka of Dahod district (94 mm), Valia of Bharuch (81 mm), and Mangrol of Surat (81 mm).

Significant rainfall was also recorded in parts of Mehsana, Sabarkantha, Ahmedabad and Banaskantha districts today.

After a long break, rain lashed Ahmedabad city today, leading to water-logging and traffic jams.

Vejalpur area was the worst affected with 139 mm of rain in just few hours. A road caved in near a newly-built pillar of Metro rail project in the area, officials said.

The entire city recorded an average rain of 50 mm during the day, which led to closure of busy underpasses in Mithakhali and Parimal garden area for some time, civic officials said.