Rains pound Jammu again

Jammu, Sep 2: Fresh spell of torrential rains Tuesday, September 2, put already battered Jammu division, still trying to wriggle out of ravages caused by devastating rains of last Tuesday (August 26), back to square one.

Pounded and staring at another spate of devastation as all its water bodies Tawi, Chenab, Basanter, Ujh, Ravi and other canals, seasonal streams, nullahs were in full-spate.

Flood like situation was looming large in many vulnerable areas as all these major rivers had either crossed (flood) alert level or were on the verge of it as water level was continuously rising due to heavy rains that battered Jammu for around nine hours.

Though the rains stopped in Jammu city and adjoining areas at 9 pm or so yet it seemed to be a temporary reprieve because as per Met department, another 24 hours were critical for Jammu division.

Rain resumed again at 10:15 pm or so and with a greater intensity.

Unenviably only Jammu city, as per met department officials, experienced an unprecedented 248 mm of rainfall in just 9 nine hours by 5:30 pm.

Roaring Tawi and mighty Chenab were already presenting a scary spectre. Jammu, Doda, Reasi, Udhampur Police had already issued advisories asking the people to stay away from these water bodies, particularly the people from low lying areas to remain extra cautious and keep a close eye on rising levels or shift to safer places.

“In view of incessant rains and recent incidents of cloud bursts and flash floods leading to major or minor damage to river embankments at several locations along Tawi, Chenab and various nullahs, the public is hereby advised to exercise utmost caution and refrain from venturing in or around water bodies, including rivers, streams, and nallahs, until there is improvement in the weather. Besides, people residing in low-lying areas and near major water bodies are advised to remain extra vigilant and should be ready for advance evacuation in case of any emergency,” the advisory said.

Water level of Tawi at Udhampur crossed the flood alert level (15 feet) by 1:30 pm and was surging to touch the danger level – 20 feet. In Reasi district, all gates of Salal dam were opened due to dangerously rising water levels in Chenab.

Similarly, the Basanter River in Samba was flowing above flood alert level; Ujh in Kathua district too crossed the flood alert level, by Tuesday afternoon its discharge was 59,750 cusecs, crossing the alert level of 48,000 cusecs, while the danger level is 88,000.

The discharge of the Ravi River in Kathua was above flood alert level and was surging to touch the danger level - 527.91 m.

Meanwhile, in view of heavy rains and considering the safety of the people, 4th Tawi bridge as well as the rotary were closed for traffic. Traffic Police asked people not to travel from Hotel Asia, Satwari Chowk and Bhagwati Nagar towards Major Somnath Chowk, 4th bridge.

The bailey bridge, constructed by the Army to restore connectivity to the 4th Tawi bridge, opened for light traffic just a few hours after it was again closed for movement. Further, the road from Atal Chowk (Panjtirthi) towards Sidhra Bridge was also closed due to landslides and shooting stones.

One tube of each bridge at Lakhanpur-Madhopur, Sahar Khad; Vijaypur on Jammu Pathankot National Highway continued to remain inoperative. The second tubes of these bridges were, however, operational for traffic movement.

In Reasi district, SDM Mahore Shafqat Majeed Bhat had directed the field staff of all departments to remain stationed at their duty locations in the wake of reports of damage to roads, houses, crops, property and public infrastructure received from various parts of the sub division Mahore.

In the district, Vaishnodevi Yatra continued to remain suspended for the eighth day amid unrelenting torrential rains in Katra, Trikuta hills as other parts of the district. Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) officials stated that track repairs were completed but Yatra would be resumed only after improvement in weather, keeping in view the safety of pilgrims.

In Udhampur, as rivers and nullahs continued to swell, heavy slush and boulders tumbled down the hill tops, particularly blocking the road near Thard. As a consequence, no traffic movement was allowed from Jakheni up to Chenani.

In Doda district also, the flood like situation persisted in Bhalessa-Gandoh area where many roads were blocked due to persisting heavy rains.

In a heartening news emanating from the district, in the face of adversities, rough terrain and weather, Engineer Troops of Indian Army’s Northern Command in concert with troops of the White Knight Corps and civil administration Tuesday (September 2) completed construction of a bailey bridge over Jangalwar Nallah, restoring vital connectivity on NH-244 to Doda and Kishtwar in record time.

“Relentless efforts on part of all stakeholders ensured successful launch of the bridge. The bridge will be opened for traffic post necessary validations in coordination with civil administration,” PRO Defence Jammu, Lt Col Suneel Bartwal said.

In Samba district, eight families in Jamoda village were evacuated to safety after their housesalong Samba-Mansar-Udhampur road, due to the floods triggered by heavy rains over the past few days, developed cracks. “Land subsidence pushed eight houses to the verge of collapse. The affected families were shifted to a school and some government buildings and provided relief on Monday,” officials said.

In a related development, J&K Directorate of Geology and Mining has asked the all the District Mineral Officers (DMOs) to proceed as per the provisions of Rule 107 of SRO 105 for facilitating the removal and lifting of such river borne material, debris deposited, slided and scattered on the affected proprietary and agricultural cultivable lands after due title verification from the Revenue Department and payment of applicable charges, without involving any disturbance of the original ground surface by way of pits, trenches or otherwise.

Meanwhile amid charges against slow restoration work, the Power Development Department Tuesday stated that it completed over 90 percent power supply restoration work across the Jammu division. Giving an overview of the power restoration works undertaken following the incessant rainfall and flash floods that caused severe damage to power infrastructure in the Jammu region on August 25 and 26, PDD said what made the restoration Efforts truly exceptional was the strong teamwork and synergy between it (PDD) and various state and central agencies such as NHPC, PGCIL, NHAI, and Police.

According to reports, with most feeders down, the power load in the region plummeted to just 299 MW on August 26, compared to the normal demand of around 1,050 MW.

“By isolating faulty network elements and sourcing power through alternate arrangements wherever possible, the department managed to restore the load to 725 (70 percent of normal load) MW by 7 pm on August 27 and further to 960 MW (92 percent of normal load) by the evening of August 28. The restoration drive was carried out through close coordination among all J&K power corporations -JKPDC, JKPTCL, and JPDCL under the supervision of Principal Secretary, PDD, H Rajesh Prasad,” the department stated.

“On the first day of rainfall, many transmission tower structures along the 132 kV line at the River Tawi crossing collapsed one after another in a cascading manner. Additionally, towers on key transmission lines—such as the one feeding power to Kishtwar district and the 132 kV Hiranagar–Battal–Manwal Transmission Line supplying power to Batal and adjoining areas, including electric traction systems also collapsed. Likewise, 220 kV Barn-Kishanpur transmission line also suffered extensive damage, affecting power supply to Districts of Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi and Jammu,” it was pointed out.

The situation was even more alarming in the distribution sector, where out of 1,349 feeders, only 364 were functional by the evening of August 26. Nearly 19,000 distribution transformers, out of a total of 49,000 in the region, were affected, in addition to hundreds of damaged poles and conductors - making it one of the worst outages ever witnessed.

“The heavy rainfall also impacted power generation severely. Amid heavy downpour; flooding of power houses, damage to access roads, and excessive silt load had forced shutdown of all hydroelectric projects of JKSPDC in Jammu division. Amidst these challenges, the 900 MW Baglihar Hydroelectric Project was restored to generation within 60 hours of shutdown. Operations were halted on August 26 due to dangerously high silt levels in the Chenab river. Through round-the-clock efforts involving road clearance, dewatering, cleaning of the powerhouse, testing of critical components, and continuous silt monitoring, MD JKSPDC Rahul Yadav and his team successfully brought the first unit online by August 28 evening, and all units were synchronized by August 29 to secure energy supply for the region,” the Department informed.

With regard to water supply restoration, Jammu Municipal Corporation Commissioner Devansh Yadav said around 65 percent restoration work was completed.

“The incessant downpour has particularly affected low-lying areas, where water mixed with heavy silt and debris entered homes, causing severe inconvenience and damage to property. Large mounds of mud and debris are being removed with the help of heavy earth-moving machinery, including JCBs, while field teams continue to manually clear clogged lanes and drains,” Yadav said.

He stated that special focus was being given to the restoration of water supply, with water being distributed through tankers on a ward-to-ward, community-based system to ensure uninterrupted access to drinking water for the citizens.