Satna, Aug 29 (PTI) Two Indian Air Force helicopters were pressed into service on Saturday evening to help stranded people in Chitrakoot after torrential rains caused the Mandakini river to overflow, inundating large parts of the pilgrimage town on the Madhya Pradesh-Uttar Pradesh border.
Three State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams were also engaged in shifting people to safer places, an official said, adding that Chief Minister Mohan Yadav was expected to carry out an aerial inspection of the area on Sunday.
“There has been no loss of life….The river’s catchment area received 10 cm of rain in just three hours, which led to the situation,” Satna Collector Satish Kumar S told PTI over phone late in the evening.
Another official said a dam breach in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh worsened the situation.
Boats were being used on inundated roads to rescue people and six relief shelters had been prepared to accommodate those affected, he said.
Majhgawan tehsil, where Chitrakoot is located, received more than 148 mm of rain between 8 am on Friday and 8.30 pm on Saturday, a Meteorological Department official said.
India Meteorological Department’s Bhopal office meteorologist S N Sahu said Satna was likely to receive heavy rains until 8 am on Sunday.
The district is expected to receive light to moderate rain on Sunday and Monday, heavy rain on Tuesday and very heavy rain on Wednesday, he added.
Satna district public relations officer Rajesh Singh said Majhgawan’s neighbouring Birsinghpur tehsil received 122 mm of rain between 8 am on Friday and 8 am on Saturday.
The water level in the Mandakini had started receding Saturday night after a pause in rainfall, Singh said adding that water from the nearby hills was gushing into the river. PTI LAL KRK
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