Vadodara: In a relief to people, water has receded in 80 per cent areas of the city which faced a flood-like situation after Vishwamitri river here swelled and inundated residential colonies.
The Army which was called yesterday for relief and rescue operation has also been withdrawn. “Water has receded from 80 per cent of areas of the city and the situation is expected to be normal in remaining 20 per cent areas soon,” Vadodara Mayor Bharat Shah told PTI today.
“As the situation has improved, the Army has been withdrawn from the city and several villages under four talukas of Savli, Dabhoi and Waghodiya of the district,” Collector Avantika Singh said.
“Though Army has been withdrawn, the NDRF team is still camping as a precautionary measure,” Singh said. Vadodara had yesterday faced a flood-like situation when water of Vishwamitri river, which is in spate, entered the residential areas following which the administration had call the Army for rescue and relief operations.
More than two lakh people were affected due to societies getting inundated after incessant rains in the catchment areas.
“Nearly 11,000 people who were shifted from the affected villages of the district have returned to their homes and now survey will be carried to assess the damage caused to crops and property because of floods,” Singh said.
“Water in Vishwamitri river of Vadodara has started receding after touching 34 feet, which was 8 feet above the danger level. At present, it is at around 30 feet and due to no rains, the level continues to decrease,” Vadodara Municipal Commissioner Manish Bhardwaj said.
Teams of fire brigade, NDRF and Army had yesterday used boats for shifting people to safer places. The Army also distributed food packets, drinking water bottles and other relief material where civic teams could not reach.
Shah said, “Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel remained in constant touch with me for monitoring and reviewing situation in the city and asking the administration to take all steps for bringing back normalcy very fast.”
“We will launch a massive cleanliness drive in the affected areas of the city to avoid any kind of health hazard. The Gujarat government has sent about 300 safai kamdars from Surat and Ahmedabad municipal corporations to Vadodara for carrying out the cleanliness drive,” VMC standing committee chairman Hitendra Patel said.
“The markets and business establishments have opened today and are doing their normal business,” Patel said. Traffic movement suspended yesterday on three over-bridges, linking the areas inside the city walls and outside, has restarted today, he added.
