With Bihar recording the heaviest rainfall in the last 30 years,  the death toll caused due to floods in different districts of Bihar on Sunday has touched 30.
Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, in the absence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, held a high-level meeting and took stock of the situation. “Red alert has been sounded and Army put on standby,” a senior government functionary said after the meet.
The worst affected district was Sitamarhi which witnessed 859 mm rainfall compared to the last 557 mm in 1977. The entire state, till so far, has received 563 mm rainfall this year compared to 488 mm in 1977. “This is unprecedented,” said secretary, Disaster Management, Manoj Kumar Srivastava. “We have kept four Army boats as standby in Danapur Cantonment.
Besides, the Air Force officials have assured us to send choppers from Gorakhpur in 20 minutes notice,” he added. If the torrential rains remain unabated, choppers may have to be pressed into service as road links of Darbhanga and Sitamarhi with Muzaffarpur have been snapped.
On Sunday, several villagers were swept away after the Ghulam Sarvar bridge on Bagmati river collapsed near Darbhanga. As a consequence, flood water has overtopped the national highway and barring a few trucks and tractors, plying of vehicles have been stopped. “The situation worsened after Nepal released 2.5 lakh cusecs water in Bihar,” said Water Resources Minister Ramasharay Prasad Singh, who admitted that the right embankment of Bagmati had breached near Runni Saidpur.
“Aurai in Muzaffarpur is now threatened as the flood water is gushing towards it from Runni Saidpur,” said Disaster Management Secretary.
Goswami effect
Tragically, no relief work has begun in any part of Bihar in right earnest due to ‘Goswami effect’. The Patna DM Gautam Goswami was put behind bars after he was accused of swindling money in the name of flood relief work in 2004.
Government sources, however, said that relief materials were being dispatched to all the flood-affected districts. “We have requested West Bengal government and Unicef for additional 20,000 polythene sheets,” said the official.
Meanwhile, the Opposition (Congress and the RJD) launched a broadside at Nitish for undertaking a trip to Mauritius at a time when the flood had wrecked havoc in the entire state. “The hapless people of this ‘headless state’ have been left to fend for themselves in the absence of any relief measures,” said BPCC chief spokesman Prem Chandra Mishra.

UP rains claim 8 lives
Lucknow, pti: With eight more people killed in rain-related incidents in different parts of Uttar Pradesh since yesterday, the toll has gone up to 25, as threat of floods loomed large with several rivers in spate.
Eight people, including three children, were killed in Bahraich district, when the wall of their house collapsed amid heavy rains, official sources said on Sunday.
According to a report from Lakhimpur-Kheri district, flood waters from the swollen Sharda river had entered the famous Dudhwa national park posing threat to the animals. Officials are taking necessary steps to safeguard them. Rains continued to lash several parts of the state on Sunday  night, with Bareilly receiving a maximum of 71 mm rainfall, weather office sources said.
Meanwhile, the major rivers  of Ganga, Ghaghra and Gomti were rising along their courses, thereby threatening floods in their catchment areas, sources said.
Over two lakh population in hundreds of villages in Baharaich, Balrampur and Barabanki districts were affected by floods, they said.
Ganga was rising at Fatehgarh, Kanpur, Dalmau and Ballia, while Ghaghra was maintaining a rising trend at Elgin bridge, Turtipar and Ayodhya. Gomti was also rising at Lucknow, Sultanpur and Jaunpur.
According to Met office, heavy rains are expected at several places in Gorkahpur, Kanpur and Bareilly divisions on Monday.