Uttar Pradesh has sounded a high alert in border districts and sent rescue teams to Nepal after deadly flash floods. The move comes as river levels rise, Indian tourists remain missing and vulnerable villages are being warned.
The administration has sounded a high alert in Maharajganj and Kushinagar districts of Uttar Pradesh and stepped up monitoring of the Gandak and other water bodies downstream of rivers in Nepal, following devastating flash floods in the neighbouring country that have killed at least 177 people and left thousands missing.
The administration in UP, which shares its northern borders with Nepal, is focusing on river monitoring, alerting vulnerable villages and keeping relief-and-rescue teams ready.
The UP government has deployed a 32-member SDRF platoon and 22 PAC personnel to Nepal for rescue and relief operations following directions from Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, an official statement said.
Four rubber boats are available and an aluminium boat is also being sent with an additional SDRF platoon. The relief commissioner’s control room is monitoring border districts, while families of stranded UP residents can contact the 1070 helpline, it said.
The Nepal floods were triggered after an ice-rock landslide blocked a river near the country’s border with China. The floods have affected several districts and left at least 826 people missing, according to Nepal’s disaster management authorities.
Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal has said nearly 300 Indian tourists are among those reported missing.
The flash floods have caused extensive damage to bridges and roads, with several major highways blocked.
In Maharajganj, District Magistrate Gaurav Singh Sogarwal and Superintendent of Police Shakti Mohan Avasthy inspected the Narayani river and adjoining areas and reviewed flood preparedness.
They also boarded an SDRF boat near the tail fall to assess rescue arrangements. Sogarwal directed revenue, police, SSB and SDRF personnel to continuously monitor the river and remain ready for relief and rescue operations. He appealed to residents to stay away from the river and low-lying areas.
In neighbouring Kushinagar, the administration has stepped up preparations amid rising water levels of the Gandak, known locally as Narayani.
District Magistrate Mahendra Singh Tanwar, accompanied by Superintendent of Police Keshav Kumar, inspected vulnerable riverside villages and the Valmikinagar barrage and urged residents to remain alert and stay away from the river and low-lying areas.
In Balrampur, a condolence meeting was held at the Samajwadi Party (SP) office to pay tribute to those killed in the Nepal disaster. Gaisri MLA Rakesh Yadav, whose constituency borders Nepal, announced that the SP would send relief material, including medicines, medical equipment, food packets, tents, tarpaulins and drinking water, to flood-affected areas in Nepal.
Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Gonda’s BJP MP Kirti Vardhan Singh expressed grief over the deaths and disappearance of Indian tourists in Nepal, saying the Indian government is assisting in relief-and-rescue operations.
He said the NDRF has reached Nepal and is searching for missing people with modern equipment and technology.
Singh said water levels and weather conditions are being monitored in border districts, including Lakhimpur Kheri, Gonda, Bahraich and Maharajganj, with a system to receive advance information about water released from Nepal.
In Ballia, two residents of Rasra town — 54-year-old Usha Devi and her 18-year-old son Rahul — have been reported missing after the Trishuli river flood in Nepal. They were reportedly at their family’s shop when the flooding occurred on August 26. Ballia DM Mangla Prasad Singh said he was seeking information about the matter.
According to the Central Water Commission’s (CWC) Daily Water Level and Forecast Bulletin dated August 27, the Rapti was rising at Madhwapur in Bihar, where the water level stood at 124.54 metres at 8 am.
It was also rising at Sarju (Babai) in Gaighat and several stations on the Kwano and Sarda rivers. The Rapti recorded 40 mm of rainfall at Bhinga, 36.4 mm at Madhwapur and 43.6 mm at Balrampur during the 24-hour period ending at 8:30 am on Thursday.
The bulletin also showed that the Sarda at Uttarakhand’s Banbasa received 67 mm of rainfall and stood at 217.6 metres at 8 am, while the Sarda at Kabir Ganj in UP’s Pilibhit was rising at 163.23 metres.
The CWC said the Ghagra at Turtipar in Ballia was above its warning level, at 64.06 metres against 63.01 metres, though the level was falling.
The administration is particularly monitoring villages in sandy areas across the river, where people and livestock live close to the river.
Arrangements are being made to move people to safer locations if the water level rises sharply.
The Valmikinagar barrage in Bihar has been under close watch, with all 36 gates opened. The discharge rose from about 1.04 lakh cusecs at 8 pm to 1.36 lakh cusecs at 9:30 pm and 1.42 lakh cusecs at 10 pm, according to the district administration.
