GUWAHATI, July 27 - The Brahmaputra River along the city has touched danger levels and alert has been sounded in the low-lying areas of Guwahati.
With the water level touching 50.55 metres, the highest in many years, alert has been issued to all departments, even as the floodwaters entered the Bhootnath cremation ground last night. Some areas near Panikhaiti have already come under floodwater.
A part of the cremation ground still remains under water. Floodwater also inundated the rest house of the cremation ground. A chunk of ground along the rest house was eroded by the Brahmaputra�s rising waters today, thus putting a question mark over the safety of the entire structure itself.
A part of the footpath near Sukreswar Temple caved in this morning due to erosion by the Brahmaputra. This created panic along the entire area.
Senior district administration officials, including Kamrup Metro Deputy Commissioner Dr M Angamuthu rushed to the spot.
Following instructions from the DC, PWD staff restored the damaged portion of the footpath.
Similarly, water has entered the backyards of some houses along the Brahmaputra at Pandu. The parking place on the Brahmaputra�s bank opposite ITA Complex, Machkhowa, has been totally submerged.
Rising water levels in the Brahmaputra also attracted sightseers with hundreds of people converging at Sukreswar, Bharalu and other locations along the river to watch the �spectacle�.
�Water level of the Brahmaputra has touched 50.55 metre. A few places are vulnerable due to rise in the water level, including Fancy Bazar, Pandu, Uzanbazar, Sunsali, Shantipur and Bhootnath. There is possibility of inundation of low-lying localities if water level continues to rise. However, at this moment the water level is steady and we are hoping for the best,� said Dr Angamuthu.
He said orders have been issued to the PWD to study the entire stretch of the footpath along the Brahmaputra at Sukreswar and Bharalu and take remedial measures if necessary.
Areas in and around Panikhaiti and Chandrapur have witnessed large-scale inundation by the Brahmaputra. The Panikhaiti-Chandrapur Road was overtopped over a stretch near Panikhaiti.
Floodwater has rendered a number of families homeless and they have been compelled to take shelter in roadside makeshift camps.
