Gujarat(India): At least seven people have died as heavy rains continue in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The Meteorological Department has said heavy rains will likely continue in the next few days.
A state minister said around 9,000 people had been shifted to safer places. Photos showed waterlogged roads and overflowing dams and rivers across the state. Transport services have come to a standstill in many areas.
Many parts of the state have received hefty rains since Sunday. Some of these regions had recorded deficient monsoon rainfall until this month, according to Down to Earth, which reports on environmental issues.
Heavy monsoon rains have wreaked havoc in Gujarat several times in 2017, killing more than 200 people in floods caused by incessant rains. According to a government report, many parts of Gujarat are in the grip of floods as major rivers “pass through very flat terrain before reaching the sea”.
“These flat lowlands of the lower river basins are prone to flooding,” it adds.
Gujarat’s Disaster Management Minister Rajendra Trivedi said 63 people have died in rain-related incidents such as drowning and wall collapse since June 1. India’s Home Minister Amit Shah has said that teams of state and national disaster response forces have been deployed at various places in Gujarat.