Nepal flood death toll crosses 547, Bihar on alert as rivers rise

Fears of a second wave of flash floods loomed over Nepal on Friday, 28 August after authorities issued a fresh warning following a rise in water levels in the Bhote Koshi river area, as the death toll from the devastation crossed 547.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority warned that the rising water level at the same site had increased the risk of another flood.

At least 320 Indians remain missing and around 400 others are stranded on the Chinese side following the flash floods along the Nepal-Tibet border, the external affairs ministry said. India is ready to extend all possible assistance to Nepal’s rescue efforts, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

Jaiswal said 96 Indians stranded on the Chinese side had safely crossed into Nepal by land. Twenty-one Indians reached New Delhi on Friday after arriving in Kathmandu a day earlier from the flood-affected areas.

The fresh warning in Nepal has heightened concerns in neighbouring Bihar, where water levels in the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi and Burhi Gandak rivers continued to rise following heavy rain and flash floods in Nepal.

A senior Bihar official said excess water had caused the Gandak to swell, prompting authorities to open all 36 gates of the barrage at Valmiki Nagar. Around 1.02 lakh cusecs had been released from the Gandak Barrage by 5 pm on Friday.

“Teams of the Water Resources Department at the Gandak barrage are on alert. Officers have been directed to ensure regular inspection of the river embankments, maintain a round-the-clock vigil and make all preparations for a possible emergency,” the official said.

The disaster in Nepal was triggered after an ice-rock landslide blocked a river near the country’s border with China, causing a flash flood that devastated parts of the Himalayan nation.

The situation has prompted Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to intensify monitoring of rivers flowing downstream from Nepal. “The water levels of several rivers, including the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi and Burhi Gandak, have been rising following continuous rainfall in their catchment areas in Nepal. The rivers have touched or crossed the danger level at several places in the bordering districts,” a senior water resources department official said.

According to the department’s Friday bulletin, the Gandak, Kosi, Ganga, Burhi Gandak and Ghaghra were flowing above the danger mark at several places in Bihar.

The Gandak has crossed the danger mark in Gopalganj, while the Kosi and Burhi Gandak have reached the danger level in Khagaria, Katihar and Kursela. The Ganga was above the danger mark at Digha, Hathidah and Gandhighat in Patna and Kahalgaon in Bhagalpur. The Ghaghra was also above the danger mark at Darauli in Siwan.

People in low-lying areas have been shifted to safer locations and all concerned departments put on alert. District magistrates have been directed to personally monitor the situation, while flood-control officials and engineers are camping at vulnerable sites in Bhagalpur, Purnea, Katihar, West Champaran and other districts.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force have been kept on standby at strategic locations.

With PTI inputs