Death toll touches 116 in Jammu and Kashmir floods 11000 rescued

At least 28 people lost their lives on Saturday as the death toll in the worst flood to hit Jammu and Kashmir in the last 50 years mounted to 116, while Army rescued 11,000 people to safety.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh along with Union minister Jitendra Singh reviewed the situation in the state and assured the Omar Abdullah government of full support on all aspects of relief. As many as 28 people have died in the Jammu region, state officials said adding, of these 14 people died in Udhampur districts in incidents of house collapses, three in Reasi district, one in Doda district.

Ten bodies of the bus passengers were recovered today in Rajouri. The bus carrying 63 passengers was washed away in flash-flood in Rajouri on Thursday. With today's recovery the number of total bodies recovered has gone up to 35.

With this, the total deaths in Jammu region gone up to 106, while ten people have died in Kashmir Valley.

"Over 107 people have died in Jammu and Kashmir due to flash-floods, landslides and house collapses," Rajnath told reporters in Jammu after the visit.

"The situation is critical. We have watched the scene of destruction," he said. As many as 2,500 villages have been affected by the floods and 450 villages have marooned, Rajnath said, adding, a large number of houses have been destroyed and road and bridges damaged.

He said that 8 teams of NDRF and 6 helicopters of IAF have been pressed in rescue and relief operations and they are doing a commendable job.

World’s major rivers under threat from environmental stressors

New Delhi: Multiple environmental stressors such as agricultural runoff, pollution and invasive species threaten the world's major rivers that serve 80 per cent of the world's population, a new research report has warned.




Between them, these rivers provide water to over 5 billion people who live near them, besides providing a home to thousands of species.

These stressors endanger the biodiversity of 65 per cent of the world's river habitats and put thousands of aquatic wildlife species at risk. Also, over-development and excessive extraction as well as billions of dollars of investment by developed countries to avert water stress have damaged biodiversity of the rivers, the report published in the latest issue of journal Nature said.



The findings of the report follow the first global-scale initiative to quantify the impact of multiple stressors on humans and riverine biodiversity. The research team comprised scientists and experts from The City College (CCNY) of The City University of New York (CUNY), University of Wisconsin and seven other institutions.

The team produced a series of maps documenting the impact using a computer-based framework they developed.



"We've integrated maps of 23 different stressors and merged them into a single index," said the report's lead author Peter McIntyre of University of Wisconsin-Madison. "In the past, policymakers and researchers have been plagued by dealing with one problem at a time. A richer and more meaningful picture emerges when all threats are considered simultaneously", he added.

Rivers in some of the world's most populated regions, including Yellow River in northern China, Ganges in India, Niger in West Africa, are losing water largely due to climate change.



Experts have warned that the changes taking place could threaten food and water supply of millions of people who live in some of the world's poorest regions.

The report stated that over 30 of the world's 47 largest rivers, which collectively account for half of the global runoff of freshwater, are under at least "moderate" threat. Eight of them are rated as being under very high threat in terms of water security for humans while 14 are rated as being under very high threat for biodiversity.



What's worse is that the report said the estimates arrived at by the research team are most probably conservative as it was unable to take into account pollution from mining or the effects on biodiversity from rising levels of pharmaceutical products in river water.

At the same time, the report stated that some rivers were not yet threatened. The rivers of Scandinavia, Siberia, northern Canada and unsettled parts of the tropical zone in Amazonia and northern Australia have the lowest threat rating.

In rich countries, heavy investment in dams and reservoirs and diverting flows from wetlands has benefited 850 million people, reducing their exposure to extreme water scarcity by 95 per cent, the report said.



The team noticed that rivers in different parts of the world were subject to similar types of stresses -- whether they were present in a developed or developing country -- such things as agricultural intensification, industrial development, river habitat modification and other factors.

"Flowing rivers represent the largest single renewable water resource for humans," said Charles J. Vörösmarty of the City University of New York, one of the report's co-authors. "What we've discovered is that when you map out these many sources of threat, you see a fully global syndrome of river degradation."

Source: India Water Review

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water

New Delhi/Chandigarh: Delhi faced fresh flood threats Monday with nearly seven lakh cusecs of water being discharged into the Yamuna river from the Hathini Kund barrage in neighbouring Haryana. Fresh alerts have also been issued in major districts like Karnal, Panipat and Faridabad.



The water level in the Yamuna reached 205.48 metre, .65 metre above the danger mark of 204.83 metre. Nearly 7.44 lakh cusecs of water has been released by Haryana, which is expected to reach Delhi by Wednesday.



Continuing rains in the national capital are also contributing to the water level. The national capital has recorded 59.2 mm of rains in the last 24 hours till 8.30 a.m. Monday morning. According to officials from the Flood Control Department, the water has broken a record of nearly 30 years.



"I have never seen so much water in the Yamuna ever since 1979, this is the highest," an official from the flood control department told IANS. With people having been evacuated from the river bed and adjacent low lying areas earlier, the flood control department says rescue boats and booster pumps are not required.

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water



Flood threat again looms over Haryana

The Yamuna continued to flow alarmingly high in Haryana Monday, posing a threat of heavy flooding in villages along the river, officials said. Fresh alerts have been issued in major districts like Karnal, Panipat and Faridabad.

Floods feared in Delhi as Haryana releases more water



According to government officials, nearly 700,000 cusecs of water was discharged into the Yamuna from the Hathnikund barrage Sunday. It was the maximum release of water into the river this season.



Incessant rainfall in the upper reaches of Shivalik hills and in Uttarakhand has led to heavy inflows. Officials said flood water has also entered into the territory of a few villages in Karnal and Yamunanagar districts and rescue work was on.



The Haryana government has issued fresh flood alerts in Karnal, Panipat, Sonepat, Faridabad and Palwal districts and their deputy commissioners have been alerted to take preventive measures.



"We have told the residents of low lying areas to leave for safer locations. We will make sure that all necessary assistance will be provided to them. We are closely monitoring the situation. Several acres of agricultural land are facing the threat of heavy floods," Ashok Sanghwan, deputy commissioner of Yamunanagar, told IANS Monday.



"Besides, over 25 villages, including Kalesar, Baburambass, Mamdubas, Tappukamalpur, Punehri, Baghwali, Jathlana and Sandhala-Sandhali villages, are on the verge of flooding."



In Karnal district, flood threat was looming over Chougam, Hansu Majra, Garhi Birbal, Garhpur Tapu, Palsora, Halwana, Nabiyabad, Japti Chhapra, Sayed Chhapra, Nagli and Dera Sikkligarh villages.



The Haryana government has also alerted the Delhi flood authorities about the increased discharge in the river and told the army to remain on standby.



Over 30 people were killed in floods in Haryana in July. Heavy flow of water has also damaged the Tajewala headworks point in Yamunanagar district. A portion of it was swept away with the heavy currents.

Source: IANS