Floods affect one lakh people in Bihar, help rushed

PATNA: Around one lakh people were affected as the swollen Bagmati breached its embankment near Tajpur in Bihar's Sitamarhi district on Saturday, prompting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to order a high-level probe into the breach and deployment of National Disaster Response Force personnel.

The river breached its embankment in a stretch of 40 - 50 metres at Tajpur under the Runnisayedpur block, inundating vast areas and several villages in eight panchayats of the district, official sources said.

As reports of swirling waters of Bagmati breaching the embankment reached him, Kumar held a high-level meeting with state Water Resources minister Vijendra Yadav, Principal Secretary (Water Resources) M R Nayak, besides Principal Secretary (Disaster Management) and other senior officials.

He ordered immediate deployment of NDRF in the affected areas to step up relief and rescue operations, an official spokesman said.

The NDRF personnel would reach the site within hours with necessary equipment, the spokesman said.

Kumar said the breach repair works were being carried out by the experts, including the engineers of the flood-fighting cells, on a "war-footing".

An estimated one lakh people were hit by the floods, the sources said, adding reports of four to five children being swept away in the swift currents were being verified.

Road communication between Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi was likely to be affected as flood waters submerged the National Highway near Koati, about 17 km from here, they said.

Unconfirmed reports suggested that the breach occurred due to digging near the embankment last night and the river swelled over a period of time because of sharp erosions.

Flood fighting continued at the breach-site and the engineers expected to plug the breach shortly, they said.

Divisional Commissioner, Tirhut, S M Raju, District Magistrate Sitamarhi and other senior officials reached the spot to oversee the relief and rescue operations.

The Water Resources Minister accompanied by Principal Secretary of the department and disaster management officials, airdashed to Sitamarhi to take stock of the situation.