Wide breach in Yamuna floods Panipat villages (Hindu 11 September 2010)

CHANDIGARH: Six villages -- Pathergarh, Sonali Kalan, Samsabad, Dhamshali and Babain -- in Panipat district of Haryana have been affected by floods due to a 80-feet breach in the Yamuna at Pathergarh.
Confirming this on Friday, Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary (Irrigation) S.S. Dhillon said crops over an area of 2,500 acres had been affected due to the breach. JCB machines have been pressed into service for rescue work in Panipat.
While reiterating Haryana's stand on Hathni Kund being a barrage and not a dam, he asserted that the State had not released any water as was being mentioned in some quarters. Rather, the water from the barrage “flows down with the natural flow''.
He further said that the water had receded considerably in the Yamuna. Giving figures, he said that 7.07 lakh cusecs of water was flowing in Hathni Kund on September 8 which came down to 2.64 lakh cusecs on September 9 and was pegged at 74,000 cusecs on Friday afternoon and is expected to reduce further.
Meanwhile, an official spokesman said the Yamuna had caused widespread flooding due to heavy rain in its catchment area and its tributaries on September 7 and 8. Accordingly, all the villages falling along the river in the State were warned about the “flood threat''.
He further disclosed that the discharge in the Yamuna had increased abruptly from 30,000 cusecs on September 7 to 330,000 cusecs on September 8 which further increased to a peak discharge of 6,07,000 cusecs at Hathni Kund Barrage.
Due to heavy rain in Bilaspur and Chhachhrauli area of Yamunanagar district, an additional 100,000 cusecs was received in the Somb and Pathrala rivers which further added to the flow in the Yamuna. Accordingly, peak discharge in the Yamuna was 707,000 cusecs on September 8.
About 97 villages in Sadhaura, Bilaspur, Chachrauli and Radaur blocks are flood-affected and agricultural land in 22 villages is submerged in water.
Even though flood waters of the Yamuna spilled into 12 villages in Karnal district, no damage was reported from the abadi area. He further said that the Palwal district authorities had evacuated two villages-- Indra Nagar and Mobali Pur -- and shifted the people to safe places.
The Sonepat and Panipat district authorities have also taken precautionary measures to tackle any situation.