NEW DELHI: After a rise in water discharge from the Hathnikund Barrage into the river as a result of heavy rain in several areas of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, the Yamuna in Delhi again crossed the danger mark on Sunday.According to officials, a further rise in the river’s water level is anticipated to hamper the relief and reconstruction efforts in the low-lying sections of the city that were flooded. The Delhi government is on high alert due to the Hathnikund Barrage’s release of over 2 lakh cusecs of water into the river, according to Revenue Minister Atishi, and the Yamuna Khadar (floodplains) may be submerged if the water level climbs to 206.7 metres. After reaching an all-time high of 208.66 metres on July 13, the river’s water level had been hanging around the danger mark of 205.33 metres for the past few days.The water level increased from 205.02 metres at 10 p.m. on Saturday to 205.96 metres at 9 a.m. on Sunday, according to data from the Central Water Commission (CWC). By 4:00 pm, it should be at 206.7 metres.The India Meteorological Department has predicted severe to very heavy rain for parts of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand through July 25. According to CWC statistics, the flow rate at the Hathnikund Barrage, which is located in Yamunanagar, surpassed 1 lakh cusecs on Saturday at 9 am and fluctuated between 2 lakh and 2.5 lakh cusecs between 10 am and 5 pm. It has remained between 1.5 and 2 lakh cusecs ever since. The capital, which is still recovering from one of the worst flood episodes it has ever had, is at risk of mid-scale flooding due to this substantial amount of water.The Yamuna river will probably reclaim the majority of its floodplain in Delhi during the second round of flooding. City planners and policy makers need to take note of the lessons learnt in light of the insightful information gleaned from this month’s most recent flood event. The public is relying on authorities to act quickly and anticipates that the ITO barrage’s gates will all be open and operating as intended.In addition, any breached sites or bunds should be repaired right away, according to Bhim Singh Rawat, associate coordinator of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers, and People. Over the past four to five days, there have been slight changes in the water level due to rain in the upper catchment areas, particularly in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The rehabilitation of the affected households in the capital’s submerged low-lying neighbourhoods would be impacted by severe rains upstream of Delhi, according to authorities with the Delhi Irrigation and Flood Control Department. They may have to spend more time in relief camps.It might also have an effect on the city’s water supply, which was disrupted for four or five days due to the flooding of a pump house near Wazirabad before returning to normal only on Tuesday. The Wazirabad, Chandrawal, and Okhla treatment facilities receive raw water from the pump house, which together provide around 25% of the city’s supply. For more than two weeks, flooding and waterlogging have affected many areas of Delhi. On July 8 and 9, a deluge initially caused severe waterlogging, with the city getting 125% of its monthly rainfall allowance in just two days.It co In the wake of this, the Yamuna river swelled to record levels in the upper catchment areas, including Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Haryana. The Yamuna significantly surpassed its prior record of 207.49 metres established in September 1978 as it reached 208.66 metres on July 13. It burst embankments and moved farther inside the city than it has in the previous forty years. Due to the devastating consequences of the floods, more than 27,000 individuals had to be evacuated from their homes.. The damages suffered in terms of real estate, businesses, and incomes totaled millions. The extraordinary flooding in Delhi is blamed on encroachment on the river floodplain, extremely heavy rain in a short period of time, and silt buildup that has increased the riverbed, according to experts.
