Bihar floods: Schools, power grid inundated, 6 barrages breached in 24 hours

A severe flood crisis continues to grapple many parts of Bihar, displacing thousands and causing widespread damage to infrastructure and farmland.

The breach of six barrages in 24 hours on Sunday aggravated the situation, leading to the overflow of major rivers like the Kosi, Gandak, and Bagmati, severely affecting districts near the Indo-Nepal border. On Monday, water discharge from the barrages was reduced as the relentless rain in Nepal subsided.

A heavy rain and flood alert has been issued in the state, six National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been called from outside the state. Currently, 12 NDRF teams and 22 State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams are actively involved in flood relief and rescue operations throughout Bihar.

The Bagmati River’s embankment breached in at least four places in Sitamarhi district on Sunday evening, impacting thousands living along its banks. In West Champaran and Sheohar districts, embankments were also breached, with the Gandak River breach in West Champaran sending large volumes of floodwater into the Valmiki Tiger Reserve.

In response, Nishikant Kumar, executive engineer of the Flood Control Division in Bagaha, was suspended for negligence and failure to coordinate effectively with local authorities.

According to the state Water Resources Department, while levels have receded in some smaller rivers, the situation remains dire for over 1.6 million people affected by the flooding. No fatalities have been reported so far, officials said.

River water levels have surged to unprecedented levels. The Valmikinagar barrage on the Gandak River released 5.62 lakh cusecs of water–the highest since 2003–before reducing the discharge to 1.89 lakh cusecs today. The Birpur barrage on the Kosi River released 6.61 lakh cusecs, marking the highest release in 56 years, with the previous record being 7.88 lakh cusecs in 1968, officials reported.

“The water levels of Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati, Burhi Gandak, Kamla Balan, Mahananda, and Ganga rivers have been rising across the state due to continuous rainfall over the past two to three days. Rainfall in Nepal’s catchment areas has caused rivers to flow at or above danger levels in several bordering districts,” Water Resources Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said on Sunday.

In the Raisari area of Darbhanga, a government school was submerged after the Kamla Balan stream overflowed. Panicked locals told India Today that river levels are rising rapidly due to water releases from Nepal.

Power supplies to thousands of homes have been cut off as infrastructure has been inundated. In Muzaffarpur, floodwaters entered the power grid control room, and officials warned that power could be shut down at any time, affecting around 42,000 to 43,000 consumers.

The worst-hit areas include East Champaran, Gopalganj, Araria, Supaul, Katihar, Purnea, and several other districts.

The Meteorological Department has already issued alerts for several districts, predicting heavy rain and warning of flash floods in parts of the state.