Life Comes To Halt In UP & Delhi; Incessant Rains Lead To Loss Of Life, Shelter, Livelihoods

With over 24 hours of incessant rains, life has been disrupted to a large extent in many parts of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi-NCR region. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted heavy rainfall during the oncoming days and has issued red and orange alerts for October 10 for many districts across UP.

As the festive season is nearing, the unusual spell of rains has played a spoilsport for many residents of these regions. On the other hand, those living in the low-lying regions of Uttar Pradesh are under the threat of losing their shelter and livelihood to the downpours. The rains have brought a halt to the movement of life across the state and impacted every community at different scales.

Here are all the updates that have come from the capital city and its adjoining areas so far.

Alerts Issued For Most Parts Of The State

UP and Delhi saw over four days of non-stop downpours that brought down the late summer temperature and flooded most parts of the cities. According to IMD, the state recorded an average of 22.5 mm rainfall on October 9, which is 2396 per cent more than the long-period average (LPA) for the day. A red alert was issued across five districts on October 10. These include Kanpur Dehat, Hamirpur, Fatehpur, Unnao and Kanpur. Regions of Jalaun, Banda, Amethi, Barabanki, Bareilly, Moradabad and Lucknow are under an orange alert, and most of the remaining areas have a yellow alert issued.

The majority of the roads are flooded and waterlogged, and the commuters have reported severe traffic snarls and hazards. Following this, the Delhi Traffic Police has issued advisories in regard to the routes that could be avoided. According to a report by India Today, some of the localities that are affected include Safdarjung, Lodhi Road, and Ayaynagar, which recorded 74.3mm, 87.2mm, and 85.2mm of rain, respectively, within the past 24 hours.

These are numbers that are not commonly seen in the month of October, and it marks the second-highest precipitation seen in Delhi in the month since 2007. The spell of rain that was disrupting movement earlier has now started causing havoc and led to the loss of at least 27 lives.

Irreparable Damages

A two-storey building that was already in a dilapidated condition collapsed near the Lahori gate on the night of October 9. Many people were reported to have been severely injured, and about ten people were admitted to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital.

In the collapse, a four-year-old lost her life and rescue operations are underway to look for more people who might be trapped under the debris. A report by News18, quoting Shweta Chauhan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of Central dist, Delhi, said that five teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are present at the spot and actively working on the site with a medical team.

A few other houses had collapsed in Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Bulandshahr, Unnao, and so on, that claimed the lives of many, including a 90-year-old, 55-year-old, and children. Several such tragic deaths caused by the heavy rains were reported across the day. The rains had capsized a boat in the Rapti river, which killed two people. In Barabanki, a tree fell and killed two people. Many people lost their lives after being struck by lightning in regions of Pilibhit, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Tilaura, Senferwa Khurd, Sitapur, and Hardoi, among others.

In Balrampur, two teenagers were swept away by the flood waters, after which the District Magistrate Mahendra Kumar appealed to the villagers to vacate their houses and move to the rescue shelters. The disaster response teams have also been tasked to oversee the rescue efforts.

Yet another incident that was reported was the drowning of six children in a rainwater-filled pond in a village in Gurugram. Teams of police, State Disaster Response Force, Civil Defence, National Disaster Response Force and fire brigade personnel had rushed to the spot and conducted operations that lasted for over four hours.

Many such temporary ponds have been created during the rains, which paved the way for similar accidents. Within the region where the accident had occurred, several pits were located that were filled with rainwater. The children did not expect the pits to be any deeper than 2 feet, but most were found to be at least 12 feet deep and dangerous for many if not cleared out. As per a report by the Indian Express, the Deputy Commissioner urged the people to inform if any other children are missing and will be taking necessary measures to review the temporary ponds created around the region.

With rains continuing to pour in, districts of Lucknow, Meerut, Gautam Buddh Nagar, and Ghaziabad have ordered the closure of schools on October 10. In Aligarh, all schools will remain closed till October 12, after which they will reconsider on the basis of the rain conditions.

Furthermore, the rains have caused severe damage to farmers and thousands of their crops, posing a question about their only livelihood.

Measures Taken So Far

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath issued an advisory directing the officials to reach the disaster-affected regions and provide immediate relief. As per his special instructions, the district magistrates of the affected districts will be looking into the waterlogging concerns.

The administrations would assist them in the same and install the necessary machinery and pump to resolve the issue. They would also be reaching out to the people who have suffered any loss of life and providing them with monetary relief.

Also Read: IMD Issues Red Alert For Parts Of Kerala, Tamil Nadu Amid Heavy Downpour