Flood situation in Bihar grim with most rivers flowing above danger mark

The flood situation in Bihar remained grim on Saturday as many rivers were still flowing above the danger mark, officials said.

In its bulletin, the Water Resources Department (WRD) said Kosi, Gandak, Bagmati, Budhi Gandak, and Ganga were flowing above the danger mark.

It said that personnel were on alert and flood protection works were being carried out at vulnerable sites.

Over 40 lakh people have been affected by the flood, which has hit 30 of the state's 38 districts since last month, officials said.

Among the worst-affected districts were East and West Champaran, Araria, Kishanganj, Gopalganj, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Supaul, Madhepura and Muzaffarpur, they said.

The Disaster Management Department (DMD) said that in the third week of September, 28.34 lakh people were affected by the flood caused by the rise in the water level of the Ganga.

"And in the second phase, a total of 16.68 lakh people were affected by the flood caused by the heavy discharge of water in the Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati, Mahananda, Kamla Balan and several other rivers from Nepal," it added.

Revenue Minister Dilip Jaiswal, who is also the state BJP president, visited the flood-affected areas in Saharsa.

He also visited a relief camp in the Mahishi area, and inspected the quality of food being provided to the people there, besides taking stock of the ongoing relief and rehabilitation work.

"I gave instructions to the officials to ensure that flood-affected people get high-quality food and all possible help," he posted on X.