Chhattisgarh: Heavy rains in several districts, some rivers in spate; more downpour predicted for next 24 hours

Several districts in Chhattisgarh have received heavy rainfall since Saturday evening, resulting in rise in water level of rivers like Mahanadi, Shivnath and Indravati as well as flooding of villages in low-lying areas, officials said.

Balodabazar received 82.4 millimetres of rainfall, Dantewada 63.1 mm, Mahasamund 65.2 mm, Janjgir-Champa 65.1 mm, Bastar 55.9 mm, Raigarh 52.7 mm, Narayanpur 47.4 mm, Bilapur 42.4 mm, Raipur 36.6 mm and Bijapur got 36.5mm between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, they said.

In Korba district, several roads have been cut off due to heavy rainfall that resulted in nullahs (major drains) and rivulets in Pali area overflowing, while Barsoor-Chitrakot road in Dantewada has been disrupted as water was flowing above the culvert on Mandher rivulet, officials informed.

A total of 11,650 cusecs (cubic foot per second) of water was released this morning from the Ravishankar Sagar (Gangrel), the largest dam in the state, built on Mahanadi river in Dhamtari district, an official said.

''More than 120 people have been evacuated to safer places in the last 48 hours in rain-hit areas. Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and state police have been deployed for relief and rescue work,'' he said.

Meanwhile, the Raipur Meteorological Centre, in the afternoon, said Bastar, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Kanker, Gariaband, Dhamtari, Bilaspur, Korba, Mahasamund, Raipur, Balodabazar and Sukma would witness heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours.

As per the state revenue department, average rainfall of 814.9 mm has been recorded in Chhattisgarh till Saturday since June 1 this year. The highest rainfall of 1814.9 mm was recorded in Bijapur district while Surguja district witnessed the lowest average rainfall of 330.7 mm during this period.

At least 64 people have died in rain-related incidents and other natural calamities between June 1 and August 13 in the state, mainly due to heavy rains in the southern and central regions, a revenue and disaster management official here said.

Of the 64 monsoon-related deaths, 36 died in lightning strikes, 22 due to drowning and six from snake bites, the official added.

''Between June 1 and August 13, as many as 55 houses were completely destroyed, 501 were partially damaged, while 14 relief camps have been set up in rain-affected districts. Rains have also killed 340 heads of cattle,'' he said.