Tehri waters reach danger mark, 63 killed in Uttarakhand

NEW DELHI - The Tehri dam waters have reached the danger mark, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said Monday amid reports that at least 63 people were killed in Uttarakhand due to heavy rains.

The water level in Tehri dam in Uttarakhand touched the danger mark of 230 metres, raising the spectre of floods in nearby areas. “Water in the Tehri has reached 230 metres,” Flood Forecast Monitoring Directorate officer B.D. Roy told IANS.

At least 63 people are reported to have been killed in the heavy rains in the state in the past few days, officials say.

An official of the Tehri Dam Development Corporation said: “If the water level reaches 235 metres, the situation will be threatening. We are monitoring the situation closely and are ensuring that no harm comes.”

NDMA says it is fully prepared for any threat and the National Disaster Response Force has been intimated.

“Response teams are always there. We have alerted all our manpower and if there is a threat at Tehri we will rush there,” R.K. Sinha, joint advisor in the NDMA, told IANS.

Any further rise in water levels in Tehri will put at risk nearby villages and towns like Haridwar, Rishikesh and adjoining areas. The threat is compounded by the fact that a high water level in the Ganga river has already created havoc in these areas.

“This is basically response time, the National Disaster Response Force has been sent to these areas and we are carrying out immediate operations,” Sinha added.

An alert has been sounded in 72 villages in the Tehri lake periphery. The administration said it is prepared to face any eventuality and many government buildings had been prepared for evacuation, if the need arises.