22 river monitoring stations record severe flood situation: CWC

The Central Water Commission on Friday warned of widespread flooding across several states, with 22 river monitoring stations reporting 'severe flood' situation and 23 others 'above normal' water levels.

According to the daily flood situation report, eight stations each in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, and one each in Gujarat, Delhi, Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan and West Bengal are in 'severe flood' category.

Another 23 stations, including in Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, have recorded 'above normal' water levels.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) said inflow forecasts have been issued for 46 dams and barrages, including 12 in Karnataka, six in Telangana, five in Andhra Pradesh, and several in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand.

Authorities have been advised to regulate dam operations strictly as per standard protocols to prevent downstream flooding.

The Yamuna river at Delhi's Old Railway Bridge is flowing in severe flood situation but with a falling trend, and is expected to recede to 207.15 metres by Friday night.

In Gujarat, heavy flows are likely to continue for the next two to three days in rivers such as Narmada, Tapi, Damanganga and Sabarmati, prompting high alerts in districts including Bharuch, Surat, Vadodara, Sabarkantha, Banaskantha and Rajkot.

In Rajasthan, rivers like Mahi, Sabarmati, Chambal and Banas are rising, with severe flood warnings in Pratapgarh, Banswara, Udaipur, Kota, Bundi and Jhalawar. Maharashtra is bracing for very heavy rainfall in Dhule, Nandurbar, Palghar, Thane and Pune, which may push rivers such as Tapi, Vaitarna, Bhima and Koyna into severe flood levels.

Uttar Pradesh continues to face a grim situation, with the Ganga, Yamuna, Ramganga and Ghagra rivers flowing above danger levels in districts such as Mathura, Ballia, Shahjahanpur, Barabanki, Farrukhabad and Fatehpur. Bihar too remains critical, with the Ganga, Kosi, Gandak and Ghagra rivers maintaining severe flood levels in Patna, Bhagalpur, Siwan and Khagaria.

The advisory also flagged flash flood risks in Gujarat, west Madhya Pradesh, east Rajasthan and parts of Maharashtra over the next 24 hours, urging authorities to be on alert for sudden rises in water levels.

The CWC has asked dam authorities in multiple basins of Krishna, Godavari, Narmada, Mahanadi and Cauvery to operate reservoirs cautiously, noting that several major projects are already near full capacity.