Officials in Madhya Pradesh, India, report that as many as 24 people have now died as a result of the flooding and heavy rainfall that has affected the state since the start of August.
Heavy rain, overflowing rivers and dam releases combined to cause severe flooding across several districts from 01 August 2021. As much as 470 mm of rain fell in 12 hours in Guna between 02 and 03 August. The Sind River in Datia District has reached record levels. As of 04 August, it stood at 143.5 metres, beating the previous high of 141.73 metres set in 1971, according to India’s Central Water Commission.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh described the flood situation as grim. He said in a statement of 04 August that flooding has affected 1,225 villages in Shivpuri, Sheopur, Datia, Gwalior, Guna, Bhind and Morena districts. Since then flooding has also affected Ashok Nagar district.
As many as 8,832 people have been rescued from flooded areas, thanks to a massive rescue effort from Air Force, Army and National and State Disaster Response Forces. A further 29,280 others have evacuated their homes.
Maharashtra Landslide
Meanwhile, recent heavy rainfall in the western state of Maharashtra caused a landslide in Thane district on 08 August 2021. Six houses were severely damaged or destroyed but no casualties reported.
Maharashtra saw some of the worst flooding in recent memory in July this year. As many as 192 people died and over 350,000 people had evacuated their homes at some point.
