116 families rendered homeless amidst incessant rain in Tripura; Met Dept issues heavy rainfall alert

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Nearly 380 people from 116 families were rendered homeless due to incessant rainfall in South Tripura district Tuesday, a report of the State Emergency Operation Centre said.According to the report issued late in the evening, the affected people have taken shelter in the seven relief camps set up in Belonia in the district. Until the latest reports came in, no deaths, injuries, or damage had been reported.While there have been no casualties Tuesday, one death by drowning was reported in West Tripura district on July 4.As per the latest reports, the water level of the Muhuri River in Belonia crossed the danger level, and that of the River Lawgang in the same district was above the expected flood level. The Bijoy River in the Sepahijala district was flowing above bed level till the last reports were received.As per disaster management authorities, Muhuri River had 24.80 meters at 6 pm which is above expected flood level and the last recorded water level was flowing at 17.30 m that has crossed to danger level. The water level of the Lawgang River in Shantirbazar was 21.90 meters at 6 pm, which is above the expected flood level.The Meteorological Department said that light to moderate rain would occur in most places in the state. The department warned that heavy to very heavy rainfall (7-20 cm) is likely to occur at a few places in the South Tripura district, and said heavy rainfall (7-11 cm) is very likely to occur at one or two places over the rest districts with expected thunderstorm or lightning at one or two places in the state.Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall (7-20 cm) over a few places, with extremely heavy rainfall likely to occur in a few places of the South Tripura district Wednesday. IMD forecast heavy rainfall in the Gomati, Sepahijala, and West Tripura districts.Story continues below this adHeavy rainfall has also been predicted in parts of South Tripura, Gomati, and Sepahijala districts Thursday.The devastating floods last year, which claimed 38 lives and affected over 17 lakh people, also incurred an estimated damage of Rs. 15,000 crore across different sectors in the state, including road connectivity, power transmission, flood management infrastructure, domestic households, public infrastructure, livestock, and agriculture.The Tripura Government has initiated a series of early preparedness mock drills across the state to prevent any recurrence of damage this year. A full-scale flood and landslide response drill is scheduled to be held in 12 locations in Agartala Wednesday to ensure preparedness in the event of floods and landslides.Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha said during the Budget Session of the Assembly this year that the state government was planning to enhance the navigability of the River Howrah, which encircles large parts of Agartala city.Story continues below this adThe river, among many in the state, had flown over danger levels during the devastating flood situation last year, rendering many homeless.A press release issued by the Tripura disaster management authority said that the full-scale mock drill would be conducted across 60 locations in the state to simulate various scenarios, including floods, landslides, and the search and evacuation of local communities from vulnerable areas.Terming Agartala city as highly vulnerable, Vishal Kumar, District Magistrate,, West Tripura underlined the significance of the mock drill, and said it would involve the fire services, police, Public Works Department (PWD), Animal Resources Development Department (ARDD), fisheries department, Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Assam Rifles and military personnel.