At least four persons were killed in rain-related incidents in Ajmer district as the swollen Banas river and other streams created flood-like conditions in several cities, including Ajmer, Pushkar, Tonk, Bundi, Sawai Madhopur, and Jodhpur.
As many as 17 persons were rescued from the strong current of the swollen Banas River near a culvert in Toda Raisingh Nagar of Tonk district on Friday night.
A report from Ajmer said that four teenage girls from Oontda village, under Gegal block of the district, were grazing goats near a swollen seasonal rivulet. One of them accidentally fell into the stream, and the other three entered the water in an attempt to save each other.
While one girl was pulled from the water in an unconscious state, the other three could not be saved. Their bodies were later recovered.
In another incident, a 14-year-old boy, Srikant, drowned in a seasonal stream in Tiloniya village of Ajmer district.
Widespread rain in Bhilwara, Tonk, Chittorgarh, and Rajsamand districts has significantly increased the inflow into the massive Bisalpur Dam, rapidly raising its gauge level to 315.50 RL metres. As a result, engineers were forced to release excess water from the dam, bringing the Banas River into spate and causing flood-like conditions in several downstream areas, including Tonk and Sawai Madhopur.
A group of 17 youths from Goleda village in Toda Raisingh Nagar of Tonk district tried to cross the strong current of the Banas river using a culvert. However, they could not succeed and got trapped in the river’s strong current.
Soon, area SDM Kapil Sharma rushed to the spot along with SDRF and Civil Defence personnel, and rescued the trapped youths with the help of a boat and rope.
Meanwhile, a flood-like situation prevailed in most of the low-lying areas of Ajmer that received 200 mm of rainfall within 30 to 35 hours. The Aanasagar Lake of the district overflowed.
The holy Pushkar Sarovar is also filled up to the brim and and all 52 ghats along the Sarovar were waterlogged.
Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani visited the flooded areas along with district authorities to take stock of the situation.
A similar situation prevailed in several areas in Jodhpur, Pali, Rajsamand, Bundi and Baran, reports reaching the state capital said.