Maharashtra: Alert issued as heavy rains elevate Godavari river water level in Nashik

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Officials in Maharashtra's Nashik district have issued an alert to residents residing along the banks of the Godavari River as its water level surged on Sunday following persistent heavy rains in the region since Friday, stated a report in PTI.

The continuous downpours prompted authorities to release water from various dams, including the Gangapur reservoir, within the district, contributing to the increase in the water level of the Godavari River.

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On Sunday, a substantial 4,544 cusecs of water (equivalent to 28.3 litres per second per cusec) was discharged from the Gangapur dam into the Godavari, leading to the submergence of significant areas along the riverbanks. Notably, the revered 'Dutondya Maruti' idol of Lord Hanuman in Nashik city was partially submerged, with water reaching up to waist level. Additionally, smaller temples in the vicinity, as well as the iconic 'Dashkriya Vidhi' canopy, found themselves under the rising waters, drawing large crowds of locals who gathered to witness the Godavari in spate.

The heavy rains have resulted in the Darna, Bham, Bhavali, Waldevi, Alandi, Karanjwan, Waghad, Haranbari, Kelzar dams, and the Nandur-Madhyameshwar reservoir reaching full capacity, according to officials. Consequently, authorities have initiated controlled discharges of water from the Darna, Nandur-Madhyameshwar, and Kadwa dams. If the rainfall persists, officials from the irrigation department have indicated that the release of water from these dams may be escalated in stages.

Meanwhile, Nagpur on Saturday was hit by floods following extremely heavy rains which led to Ambazari Lake, the city's largest waterbody, breaching its boundaries. The deluge, with extremely heavy rainfall of 109 mm in three hours, resulted in severe flooding affecting around 10,000 homes, Tragically, four persons, including a paralysed woman, lost their lives in the rain-related incidents while over 400 had to be relocated to safety.

Teams of National Disaster Response Force and their state counterpart SDRF were engaged in the rescue operations in Nagpur.

Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, while speaking to the media, emphasized that the infrastructure of Nag Lake like the boundary wall etc. needs repairing and that they will also look into options for infrastructural modifications of Ambazari Lake to mitigate the issue of it breaching its boundaries and flooding nearby areas.