Raging Yamuna floods homes; Nigambodh ghats shut, as river breaches 207-metre mark

Waters from a raging Yamuna submerged homes, destroyed shop goods and disrupted traffic in several areas, throwing life out of gear for thousands of people in the national capital, as the river breached the 207-metre mark on Wednesday for the fifth time since 1963.

The water from the flooded river also entered the Nigambodh Ghat, Delhi's oldest and busiest cremation ground, forcing it to halt operations.

The Geeta Colony crematorium was also flooded, forcing the staff to look for dry places to carry out cremations.

According to the revenue department, while 8,018 people have been moved to tents, 2,030 have been shifted to 13 permanent shelters. Around 180 people are yet to be shifted.

All 13 regulator drains in the city were closed to avoid any backflow of water from the Yamuna as the water level in the river is high and reaching a critical point, a government official told PTI.

Carrying their belongings on their heads, people waded through neck-deep water to move to safer locations. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police, and fire department have been roped in to carry out the rescue work.

From shopkeepers in Majnu-ka-Tila to families in Madanpur Khadar, Jaitpur, and Badarpur, many have been displaced and forced to relocate to makeshift shelters, hoping for the waters to recede.

The Yamuna continued to be in a state of spate as it swelled to 207.39 metres at 8 pm. According to the flood update report, it is expected to rise further.

More than 1.68 lakh cusecs of water were released from Hathnikund Barrage towards Delhi on Wednesday.

According to officials, North, North East, Shahdara, East, Central and South East districts of the national capital are prone to flooding.

About 10,000 people living in low-lying areas are impacted due to the swollen river.

In 2023, when the city was hit by severe flooding, the Yamuna's level rose to 208.66 metres. The other highest ever was in 1978, when the river bobbed at 207.49 metres.

In 2010, its level rose to 207.11 metres, and in 2013 to 207.32 metres.

The government has set up relief camps at 38 locations, setting up 522 tents at 27 locations.

The city's Irrigation and Flood Control Department is coordinating with its counterpart in Uttar Pradesh to monitor the discharge of water from Okhla Barrage, officials said.