Maha rains: 16 rescued by helicopter in two villages in Osmanabad district

As many as 16 persons stranded in floodwaters were rescued by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) using a helicopter in Maharashtra's Osmanabad district on Tuesday, officials said. The district and other parts of the Marathwada region have been lashed by rains in the last two days.

Six persons including two children were rescued by the helicopter from Dautpur village in Osmanabad tehsil while ten persons were rescued from Saundane Amba village in Kalamb tehsil.

The collector of the neighbouring Latur district, Prithviraj B P, told PTI that a family of three including a child was reportedly stranded at Pohregaon in Renapur tehsil of the district, but rescue teams could not reach the spot due to the bad weather and low visibility ''We are trying other ways to rescue them. The helicopter has halted in Latur. It will fly tomorrow morning to rescue them,'' he said.

The Osmanabad district has received 824.90 mm of average rainfall this monsoon, 204 mm higher than the 620.60 mm recorded last year, with Bhoom tehsil receiving 961.60 mm rain this season so far, an official said.

After several years, the district, part of the generally parched Marathwada region, has received such robust rain, which stands at 136.78 per cent of the annual average, he added.

''Dams like Sinakolegaon, Chandani, Manjra, Terna, Lower Terna, Ruibhar, Kurnoor and Bori are overflowing. Ujani Dam, which is the main source of water for Osmanabad city, is also overflowing. Heavy rains have affected Kharif crops like soybean, moong, urad, tur, cotton and bajra,'' he said. The Osmanabad-Ausa road was blocked as water was flowing over the Kamegaon-Samudrawani bridge with vehicles stranded on both sides for several hours, the official said.

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