A major evacuation operation was underway along the river Narmada in Bharuch and Vadodara districts of south Gujarat where the water level has crossed the danger mark, officials said.
The Sardar Sarovar dam on the river Narmada is overflowing by nine metres due to heavy rains in the catchment area of the river in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, they said. The height of the dam had recently been raised to 119 metres.
Due to the high inflow of water river, Narmada is flowing above the danger mark of three feet in Bharuch district, District Collector Murli Krishna said. The district administration has started a major drive to evacuate the people along the banks of the river from Bharuch, Ankleshwar, Jagadia town and 25 other villages, he added.
A report from Vadodara said people living in 14 villages along the banks of river Narmada have been asked to move to safer places, Vadodara District Collector Rajiv Topno said.
Four villages are in Dabhoi taluka, six in Karjan and four in Sinor taluka while boats have used in Chanod town after water from the Narmada entered the town
Meanwhile, 2,500 people living in low-lying areas of Manjalpur, Kisanwadi localities in Vadodara city have been evacuated to safer places following the rise in water level of Vishwamitri river passing through the city, Topno said.