1 dead, 120 houses cave in due to heavy rain in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar

One person has died, around 120 houses caved in and close to 200 villages were cut off from the district headquarters due to incessant rains for last four days in south Bastar’s Bijapur and Sukma, officials said.

District administrations are on high alert and more than 1, 500 people were shifted to relief camps and other safer places due to inundation of villages. As per officials, Sukma recorded 916 mm rainfall against normal 781 mm while Bijapur recorded 1, 647 mm against normal 942 mm since June.

According to officials, around 70 people were evacuated from flood-affected areas in Bijapur on Monday. District collector Ritesh Agarwal said around 120 houses have been destroyed till now due to incessant rain. He added that one person died in the district and around 1000 people were shifted to relief camps.

Sukma Collector Chandan Kumar said: “ We are on alert and people are being evacuated. The administration is also assessing the loss of the villagers as per the directions. The worst affected is Konta area where a relief camp has been established.”

Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel had on Monday asked the district officials to assess the damage caused due to rains and provide immediate assistance.

On Tuesday , two cabinet ministers –excise minister, Kawasi Lakhma and minister for disaster management, Jaisingh Agarwal visited flood affected districts and took the stock of the situation. “The water level in Shabri, Indravati and its tributaries are continuously increasing due to continuous rain due to which villages are suffering from flood. Relief measures and people evacuation of villagers is continuously going on,” said Lakhma.

Several villages in interior areas of Bijapur and Sukma have been cut off from the district headquarters due to the swelling rivers and rivulets and administration has started rehabilitation. “Nearly 318 security personnel, deployed for anti-Naxal operations, have been shifted from their camps to other locations after flooding,” said an official.