Patna: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Friday forecast heavy rainfall in parts of Bihar, and warned of low to moderate “flash flood risk” in 13 districts over the next 24 hours.
Heavy rain is likely in West Champaran, East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Vaishali, Patna, Jehanabad, Madhubani and Bhojpur districts, it said in a bulletin.
These districts are at the risk of “low to moderate flash floods in the next 24 hours”, the Met Department said.
The Disaster Management Department (DMD) has asked the administration of the districts to remain on alert, and take preventive measures in the wake of the forecast.
The department has also written to the 13 district magistrates in this regard.
Around 12 districts situated along the Ganga, including Buxar, Bhojpur, Saran, Patna, Samastipur, Begusarai, Munger and Bhagalpur, are already experiencing a flood-like situation in the state, and nearly 13.5 lakh people living in low-lying areas have been affected by rising water levels of rivers, following torrential rainfall, officials said.
A large number of people from the affected districts have been evacuated and brought to relief camps, they said.
Meanwhile, the Bihar Water Resources Department (WRD) has sounded an alert for flood in areas along the swollen Kosi and Gandak rivers.
The water level of several rivers has been rising across the state, following continuous rainfall over the past two to three days, the officials said.
“Incessant rainfall in catchment areas of Nepal has also led to rivers touching or flowing above the danger level at several places in the bordering districts. Keeping the gravity of the situation in mind, the authorities in Bihar will lift some gates at Valmikinagar barrage on the Gandak river in the intervening night of September 27 and September 28, and release 6 lakh cusecs of water, the highest in the recent past, ” a bulletin issued by the WRD said.
The authorities will also release 6.81 lakh cusecs of water around 12 noon on September 28 from the Kosi Birpur barrage, it said.