Delhi Water Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday said the Yamuna river flowing in the national capital could touch the danger mark in the next 24 to 48 hours. He said it all depends on how much more water will be released from the Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana. The erratic rains in Delhi and heavy showers in Haryana have contributed to the water level in the Yamuna reaching 203.37 metres on Thursday, just over a metre shy from the danger mark of 204.50 metres.
Jain, however, said the Delhi government is prepared to tackle a possible flood situation, saying an alert will be sounded as soon as Yamuna will be near the warning mark. He asserted that the government has identified the low-lying areas around the Yamuna as these will be the first ones to get impacted.
The Water Minister further said that these identified areas will be notified in a list for the government functionaries to take quick action. He added that at the moment the situation does not demand the evacuation of people from thelow-lying areas.
The Yamuna river has been swelling for the last couple of weeks after the arrival of the monsoon in Delhi and neighbouring Haryana. Water from the Hathnikund barrage, located in Yamunanagar district in Haryana, is also making the river’s situation sensitive.
An official of Delhi’s Irrigation and Flood Control Department said that water into the Yamuna river was being released at a rate of 85,879 cusecs at 10 am on Thursday, adding that the flow rate at the Hathnikund barrage is normally 352 cusecs. One cusec translates to 28.32 litres per second. The official, however, noted that “the flow rate peaked to 1.60 lakh cusecs in the last 24 hours, the highest so far this year”.
The water released from the Hathnikund barrage takes around two to three days to reach the national capital.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here.
Comments
0 comment