July 8, 2024: Heavy rains continue to lash many areas of Uttarakhand, causing rivers to overflow and landslides to block major highways. The India Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for the state, with extremely heavy rainfall forecast in isolated areas today.
The IMD’s latest bulletin has warned of persistent heavy to very heavy rainfall over various parts of the west coast, northeast India, eastern states and Uttar Pradesh over the next five days. Uttarakhand is particularly under the watch, with exceptionally heavy rainfall predicted today.
In response to the deteriorating weather conditions, a red alert has been issued for Uttarakhand, while neighbouring states such as Uttar Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra and Odisha have been placed under an orange alert. States such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar are under a yellow alert.
The impact of the ongoing monsoon havoc is clearly visible in the northern and central states. Apart from Uttarakhand, heavy rains have occurred in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, Rajasthan and Gujarat. The Chardham Yatra has been postponed till Monday due to the closure of major highways including the disruption caused by the rock slide at Vishnuprayag on the Badrinath National Highway in Uttarakhand. Strict monitoring is being done on the overflowing rivers including Ganga and Alaknanda as the water level is reaching close to the danger mark, the water level of Ganga is currently just 85 cm below the danger mark. Due to torrential rains in Bihar, major rivers like Kosi, Mahananda, Bagmati, Gandak, Kamla Balan and Kamla reached close to the danger mark. The IMD has advised the residents and officials of these areas to remain alert and take necessary precautions as heavy rains are expected to continue till July 11.
