Yamuna starts receding in Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 14: The water level in the Yamuna river on Monday started receding along its length in the national capital, though it continued to flow above the danger mark, an official said. “By 9 a.m. today (Monday) the water level was 205.22 metres. It is six centimetres lower than the water level recorded at 8.30 a.m.,” an official of Delhi’s flood control department said. “The water is expected to recede further,” the official added. After breaching its danger mark on Sunday, the Yamuna submerged hundreds of shanties and areas in what is generally termed as the “vegetable belt” of the capital. Low-lying areas like Usmanpur, Sonia Vihar, parts of Okhla, Sultanpuri, and Garhi were submerged. Nearly 1,200 people were moved to safer places. At least 17 rescue boats have been put on the job of shifting people to relief camps. A flood warning was sounded in the capital Friday after continuous rainfall pushed up the water level in the Yamuna. Haryana also released over 400,000 cusecs of water into the river upstream. Last year, the water level reached 206 metres, leading to the evacuation of people from slum clusters along the river banks. The Delhi government has said it is fully prepared to tackle any situation. There are several slum clusters along the Yamuna banks and thousands of people live in these low-lying areas. (IANS)