Chambal, Parvati rivers trigger floods in several Rajasthan districts

Flood-like conditions have gripped several parts of Karauli, Dholpur, Tonk, Kota, and Sawai Madhopur districts in Rajasthan, following widespread monsoon rainfall over the past 24 hours.

The release of 5 lakh cusecs of water from the Navnera Barrage into the Chambal River has caused the river to swell along most of its course through Rajasthan.

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At 10 AM on Wednesday, the swollen Chambal was flowing at 167.40 meters in Karauli — 2.5 meters above the danger mark of 165 meters — flooding several low-lying areas and nearby villages.

Rescue and evacuation operations are being carried out by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Civil Defence, police, and local residents, under the direct supervision of District Collector Neelabh Saxena and the District Police Chief. People from six villages in the Mandrayal region have been evacuated to relief camps.

In Dholpur, the river was flowing at an alarming level of 139 meters, nearly 7 meters above the danger mark of 131.79 meters.

This has raised concerns about the submergence of the Old Chambal Bridge in Dholpur city and poses a serious flood threat to 60 villages in the Rajakheda and Sarmathura blocks. Residents of four villages on the outskirts of Dholpur have already been alerted.

District Collector Srinidhi BT visited the affected areas in Rajakheda, accompanied by a team of officials.

Similarly, the Parvati River and several seasonal rivulets have wreaked havoc in parts of Baran, Kota, Bundi, and Tonk districts. The Parvati, flowing 3 meters above the danger mark, has inundated many villages in the Khatauli-Etawa blocks of Kota district.

Following an alert from Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Kota Collector Piyush Samariya rushed to the flood-hit villages and ensured the evacuation of affected people to relief camps, along with proper arrangements for food and drinking water.

The Sukhani River is also in spate, flooding low-lying areas in the Pipalda subdivision of Kota.

District collectors of all rain-affected districts have remained on the ground along with their teams, acting on the directives of Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma.

The Chief Minister conducted a review meeting with district collectors and senior officials in Jaipur to assess the situation following the monsoon’s revival since Monday.

The state capital Jaipur also received heavy rainfall from the early hours of Wednesday till late afternoon, resulting in waterlogging and traffic jams across various parts of the Pink City.

The Chief Minister personally visited rain-affected areas in his Sanganer assembly constituency, taking stock of the damage and relief measures underway.