Yamuna breach makes Delhi heave a sigh of relief (Indian Express 11 September 2010)

Though water level of the river touched 206.03 metres by evening, officials ruled out the possibility of any major flooding
A breach in the Yamuna, passing through Panipat in Haryana, has diverted the flow of water — abating fears of massive flooding in the national capital.
With the water level rising since Thursday evening to reach 206.03 metres — 1.2 metres above the danger mark — by the same time on Friday, Railway authorities were forced to close the Old Yamuna Bridge.
The civic authorities, however, have made it clear that there is no chance of flood waters reaching city areas, and people living in low-lying areas had been evacuated by August-end itself.
“There is no need to worry. Everything is in place and the administration is fully equipped to handle any eventuality. I was informed earlier today that some breaches have taken place in canals outside Delhi, due to which the water flowing through them has also deviated to other areas,” Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said.
The Central Water Commission had sounded the flood alarm after the water level reached 231.96 metres at Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh at 7 am — indicating a rising trend. The flood warning was, however, brought down to moderate as the water level fell to 231.90 metres at about 2 pm, 1.05 metres above the danger mark.
A breach in the river at Pathargarh, Panipat, led to a decrease in the level of water heading towards New Delhi, officials said.
“There has been no further release from the Tajewala water works and, as per the CWC forecast, the water level is still showing a rising trend. It may reach 206.35 metres at the Old Yamuna Bridge by 6 am on Saturday,” VPS Tomar, Chief Engineer of the Delhi government’s Flood Control Department, told Newsline.
While the rains have receded in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand for the time being, any further rainfall upstream could result in flooding of low-lying areas in the city, such as Usmanpur, Garhi Mandu and Batla House. Most of the areas prone to flooding were evacuated when the Yamuna rose in August-end. People from these areas have been living in camps ever since.
While 6.07 lakh cusecs of water crossed the Hathnikund barrage on Wednesday, another 1 lakh cusecs were added to the flow from the Som river during the passage of the Yamuna to the Capital.
Sluice gates of drains opening into the Yamuna have been closed to prevent any flooding in the city due to backflow. Civic authorities have assured the public that this will not lead to overflowing of the city’s drains, as pumps are working round the clock to flush out excess water.
“The department is geared up and working 24/7 to keep the situation under control. Big pumps have been installed at major drains to continuously pump out water,” Tomar said.
While traffic was diverted from the Ring Road to Seelampur and Seemapuri due to the shutting down of Old Yamuna Bridge, seven trains were cancelled, 28 were short-terminated, and 24 had to be diverted.