Rain lashes UP as over 21,000 evacuated from flood-hit districts

Rain lashed several parts of Uttar Pradesh on Friday, 11 September as authorities stepped up relief and rescue operations in flood-hit districts, with 21,350 people evacuated to safer places so far and 2,972 staying in relief camps.

The Relief Commissioner's office said 8,000 people were shifted to safer locations on Thursday, taking the total number evacuated so far to 21,350.

The administration has deployed 2,385 boats and motorboats to evacuate people stranded in flood-affected areas. A total of 2,972 people are currently staying in relief camps.

The flood-affected districts include Ayodhya, Azamgarh, Bahraich, Badaun, Ballia, Barabanki, Basti, Farrukhabad, Ghazipur, Gonda, Gorakhpur, Hardoi, Kasganj, Kaushambi, Kanpur Nagar, Lakhimpur Kheri, Moradabad, Prayagraj, Raebareli, Rampur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Sitapur, Shahjahanpur, Unnao and Varanasi.

The government distributed 72,620 lunch packets and 9,937 flood relief kits on Thursday. So far, more than 9.31 lakh lunch packets and over 1.49 lakh food packets have been distributed in the affected areas.

The health department has formed 1,165 medical teams, while more than 7.22 lakh chlorine tablets and 2.97 lakh ORS packets have been distributed to help prevent water-borne diseases. Around 6,956 quintals of fodder has also been distributed for livestock.

No loss of life or livestock has been reported due to the floods so far, the statement said.

The India Meteorological Department forecast rain or thundershowers at isolated places across the state, but issued no warning for Uttar Pradesh. Among the places that received rain, Jhansi recorded the highest rainfall at 22.7 mm, according to the IMD bulletin. Banda received 18.2 mm, Hardoi 15 mm, Kanpur (IAF) 13.8 mm, Aligarh 7 mm, Etawah 5 mm and Orai 3.4 mm.

In Lucknow, the maximum temperature was 32.2°C, 1.4°C below normal, while the minimum was 26.4°C, 1.5°C above normal. The state capital received 2 mm of rainfall between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm, according to the IMD.

The weather office forecast generally cloudy skies becoming partly cloudy in Lucknow and adjoining areas, with the maximum and minimum temperatures likely to remain around 33 and 27°C, respectively.

Ayodhya recorded the highest maximum temperature at 34.5°C, followed by Meerut at 34°C. Muzaffarnagar and Agra recorded 33.8°C each, while Prayagraj, Basti and Gorakhpur recorded maximum temperatures of 33, 33 and 32.8°C, respectively.

With PTI inputs