With the level of water rising in Ganga at several key locations in Patna and Hajipur, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inspected the situation on Saturday and urged the district officials to “remain alert and be prepared to tackle any situation”.
As per the officials, the river is flowing above the danger mark at Digha Ghat, Gandhi Ghat, Hathidah, and Maner in Patna district. Several low-lying areas in Patna and Hajipur (Vaishali district) have been inundated.
Nearly all rivers in the state are impacting low-lying areas. So far, five people have lost their lives – four in Saran and one in Bhojpur- after flooding submerged their localities, officials reported.
“The CM directed the district administration and other officials concerned to remain alert and be prepared if the water level rises further,” the Chief Minister’s Office said.
The state Disaster Management Department (DMD) reports that around 12 districts along the Ganga are facing flood-like conditions, affecting approximately 9.78 lakh people in low-lying areas due to rising water levels. A total of 327 village panchayats in these districts have been impacted.
The 12 affected districts are Buxar, Bhojpur, Saran, Vaishali, Patna, Samastipur, Begusarai, Lakhisarai, Munger, Khagaria, Bhagalpur and Katihar.
(With PTI inputs)