PUNE: Heavy rains lashed Baramati and Indapur tehsils in Pune on Sunday, resulting in a flood-like situation in several areas, prompting the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to deploy specialised teams on the urgent request of the district collector, officials said.
Baramati tehsil received 83.6 millimetres of rain during the day, while the figure was 35.7 mm for Indapur, they added.
Pune (Rural) Superintendent of Police Sandip Singh Gill said a stretch of the Pune-Solapur highway near Indapur remained closed for about two hours due to waterlogging, but traffic resumed after the water receded.
Rainwater entered several homes in 70 villages in Indapur, as well as 150 homes in Baramati, forcing local authorities to immediately shift residents to safety, police and district officials said.
"In response to an urgent requisition from the district collector, the NDRF deployed two specialised teams to conduct rescue and relief operations in Baramati and Indapur. In Baramati, 19 homes suffered partial damage. In Katewadi, a family of seven stranded in their waterlogged home was rescued by locals and officials. In Jalochi village, Rupesh Singh, stranded in a stream after his motorcycle was swept away, was rescued by the fire brigade," an official said.
In a release, the NDRF said, "The deployment was necessitated due to a breach in water canals, which resulted in severe inundation of multiple low-lying residential areas. Rising water levels in the Kara River (Baramati) and the Neera River (Indapur) further exacerbated the risk, triggering urgent evacuation concerns. Initially, seven people were reported trapped in Baramati, and two in Indapur."
"Both NDRF teams were mobilised from the unit headquarters in the evening. They comprise trained personnel, including divers equipped with deep diving sets, flood water rescue (FWR) gear and medical first response (MFR) equipment. The teams were dispatched to Baramati and Indapur for immediate response. All stranded people have been rescued," it added.
In a post on X, Baramati Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule requested the state's higher education ministry to postpone exams of various departments scheduled on Monday due to heavy rains in the district.
"There has been continuous rainfall in Pune district and its adjacent areas for the last three to four days. This has led to a flood-like situation in many areas. Students may face difficulties who are appearing for the engineering department and other exams to be held tomorrow. I humbly request the Minister of Higher and Technical Education, Chandrakantdada Patil, that he should consider postponing all the exams scheduled to be held tomorrow considering the interest of the students," she said in her post.
In another post, the NCP (SP) leader said rains over the past three days in Pune and her Baramati Lok Sabha constituency had caused waterlogging due to overflowing of drains and streams and urged people to take all precautions over the coming period.
In the post, she asked the district collectorate, the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority and civic bodies to take note of the rains and activate the administrative apparatus and also ensure affected people are given immediate relief.