Met office predicts rain in South Bengal till Lakshmi Puja, low-lying areas face flood threat

Kolkata, Oct 4 (IANS) The Met office has predicted moderate to heavy rain across South Bengal from Saturday through Lakshmi Puja on Monday, under the influence of a deep depression over Gangetic Bengal.

The depression that was formed has already reached the landmass.

Due to the heavy rain accompanied by water release from the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) dams, several low-lying areas in Bengal in Howrah, Hooghly, West Midnapore, and East Midnapore districts are likely to be flooded.

According to the met department, there is a possibility of rain in all the districts of South Bengal for the next two days. Rain with thunderstorms may occur in some districts. Rain is predicted in the districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, East Midnapore, West Midnapore, Bankura, Howrah, Nadia, and Birbhum districts.

Gusty winds of 30-40 kmph may accompany the rain. The spell is likely to continue till Monday, coinciding with Lakshmi Puja.

Kolkata is set to receive moderate to heavy rain on Saturday and the following two days.

Meanwhile, there is a possibility of rain in all the districts of north Bengal till Tuesday. There is a warning of heavy to very heavy rain in the districts of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, and Jalpaiguri.

The fresh forecast comes amid a political row over DVC’s water release. On Friday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the corporation of “ruining the festive mood” during Vijayadashami by releasing 65,000 cusecs of water from its dams without prior intimation to the state.

“This reckless act is nothing short of an attempt to inflict misery during our sacred festivities,” the Chief Minister stated on Friday afternoon in a social media post.

According to her, such unilateral action on the part of DVC was shameful and absolutely unacceptable.

“By releasing water without prior intimation, the DVC has placed millions of lives in Bengal in immediate peril. This is not a natural calamity; it is a disaster manufactured by the DVC,” the Chief Minister said.

--IANS

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