Embankments of the Gandak River breached at two places in Bihar's Gopalganj and Saran districts on Wednesday amid heavy discharge from barrages, while seepage and piping at several locations added to the pressure on the flood-control system, officials said.
According to a statement issued by the Water Resources Department (WRD), the Bandhauli-Sheetalpur-Faizullahpur Zamindari Bund in Gopalganj's Baikunthpur block on the right main embankment was breached over a stretch of around six meters at Sheetalpur village early on Wednesday.
Water may spread to low-lying areas of Parsauni, Sheetalpur and Pakhan villages, potentially disrupting connectivity. The Saran main embankment remains safe, it added.
"In Saran district, the right Saran embankment of the Gandak in Haijalpur village of Maker block suddenly subsided over around 8 metres in the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday. A flood-control gate was also damaged, causing water to spread. Low-lying areas of Haijalpur, Parmanand Chhapra and Naukraha villages are at risk of inundation and connectivity disruption," the statement said.
The Ganga was also flowing above the danger level in Patna and a few other places, adding to pressure on the embankments. Authorities have alerted residents in the vulnerable areas, while teams from the WRD, along with the Gopalganj and Saran district administrations, are carrying out round-the-clock flood-fighting measures, it said.
On Tuesday, two stretches of the Champaran embankment on the left bank of the Gandak River were damaged overnight at Khairatwa in Bagaha-1 and Phuliyakhad in Bairia.
Water discharge from three major barrages in the state showed mixed trends on Wednesday morning, with those of the Gandak and Sone registering decline and that of the Kosi remaining steady, according to the WRD.
"At Valmikinagar Gandak Barrage, discharge fell from 1,39,400 cusecs at 4 am to 1,31,500 cusecs at 7 am on Wednesday. The Kosi Barrage at Birpur maintained a steady discharge of 1,04,100 cusecs during the same period. At Indrapuri Sone Barrage, discharge declined sharply from 1,59,062 cusecs at 4 am to 1,19,960 cusecs at 7 am," it said.
The discharge of water from the Valmikinagar barrage in West Champaran district remained at over 4 lakh cusecs for the last two-three days. That water is now passing through low-lying areas in other districts, causing floods and putting pressure on embankments, officials said.
There is heavy pressure on the embankments of Gandak River due to water in Gandak and Ganga rivers remaining above the danger level. Seepage and piping are occurring at several locations and are being controlled through round-the-clock flood-fighting measures, officials said.
Incessant rain across the state, coupled with heavy downpour in Nepal's catchment areas, has caused rivers and streams to overflow, they added.
(With inputs from PTI)