1171 villages affected by heavy rains and floods in MP, 1600 people rescued : cm shivraj

abernews bhopal  Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Tuesday that in addition to Shivpuri, Sheopur, Datia, Gwalior a...

abernews bhopal  Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Tuesday that in addition to Shivpuri, Sheopur, Datia, Gwalior and Bhind districts of Gwalior-Chambal division, about 1171 villages have been affected in Rewa district, out of which a total of 200 villages have been affected by floods.  Still surrounded by water.  He said that the teams of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have rescued around 1600 people trapped in the floods.  Chouhan said that the army has been called and five helicopters of the Air Force took off from Gwalior this morning, but could not land for rescue due to bad weather.  He said this while addressing the media after reviewing the situation of flood and excessive rainfall from the situation room located in the ministry.  Chouhan appealed to the people of the affected villages to be alert and said, “We are worrying about you.  Instructions have been given to arrange relief camps and food.  Ignore rumours.  All dams are safe, have confidence.  The government is making every effort.  He said that as soon as the weather improves, helicopters will again leave for relief and rescue work.  Chouhan said, “Especially in Shivpuri and Sheopur 22 villages are surrounded.  Yesterday 11 people were evacuated by the Air Force.  70 teams of SDRF and three teams of NDRF are engaged in the rescue operation.  The central government has been requested to send more teams.

 The Chief Minister said that a dire situation has arisen due to excessive rains and floods.  Shivpuri and Sheopur received 800 mm of rainfall in two days, resulting in a flood situation.  He said, “Three people were stuck on a tree in Shivpuri’s Beechi village, who have been rescued.  Villages far and wide are empty.  A priest is surrounded on the roof of the temple.  worrying about them.  Food and relief arrangements are being made.  Efforts are being made to build consolation.  Chauhan said, "Me and our ministers are constantly monitoring the situation." He said that discussions have been held with the Air Force officer.  Collectors of the affected districts Shivpuri, Datia, Gwalior, Ashoknagar are in touch.  Chouhan said, “Water was released due to excess water in Madikheda dam.  Before the dam, 12,500 cusecs of water was being released, but now it has been reduced to 10,500 cusecs.  The people of the villages affected by the release of water from the dam have been alerted.  Now the situation will improve soon.  Chouhan said that State Home Minister Dr. Narottam Mishra, Water Resources Minister Tulsi Silawat and Revenue Minister Govind Singh Rajput are monitoring the situation and Minister Yashodhara Raje Scindia and Shivpuri in-charge Minister Mahendra Singh Sisodia from Shivpuri Control Room for relief and rescue.  Coordinating tasks.

 He said that apart from three people trapped on a tree for nearly 24 hours in flood-hit Shivpuri district, five others were rescued by rescue teams on Tuesday amid heavy rains.  A railway official said on Tuesday that repair work is underway between Padarkhed and Mohana due to which several trains passing through the Shivpuri-Gwalior section have been diverted or canceled.  A major part of the bridge over Sindh river near Ratangarh temple located near Datia town was washed away due to heavy rains, a police official said.  Earlier, Rajesh Rajaira, Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, had told that the army has been called for rescue work in the flood-affected areas in Shivpuri, Sheopur, Gwalior and Datia districts.  The Chief Minister apprised Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the situation of excessive rains and floods in the state.  He informed the Prime Minister over the phone that due to continuous rainfall in the Gwalior-Chambal region of the state, a dire situation remains.  Chouhan informed Modi about the ongoing rescue operation in the state and also discussed about the help of the army in the flood-prone areas.  According to him, the Prime Minister has assured all possible cooperation from the Center to the state.  Chouhan said that soon an aerial survey of the flood affected areas of the state would be conducted.