Rain-related incidents claimed nine more lives in Gujarat, taking the death toll to 16 in two days, while another 8,500 people were relocated and rescued from flood-affected areas with rains continuing to lash some parts of the state for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, officials said.
The IMD also issued a red alert in the same 10 districts for August 3 also.
He appealed to Kerala to extend cooperation to store full water in the Mullaiperiyar dam.
Personnel of NDRF, Fire, Forest and police departments have expanded their search operations to the downstream of a river in their efforts to trace 19 more people who were still missing in the August 7 tragedy near Rajamala.
The Cauvery Supervisory Committee on Wednesday rejected Tamil Nadu's demand for its share of water saying it was not feasible, given the deficit in inflows and storage level in reservoirs in Karnataka.
"This year, the Southwest Monsoon is likely to set over Kerala on May 31 with a model error of four days," the India meteorological department said on Wednesday.
Lush agricultural lands have turned parch as groundwater levels deplete to new lows, and wells and water reservoirs go dry. While the administration points to deficient rainfall as a reason, experts and activists say the drought is mostly man-made.
Rainfall in the week ended August 29 was about six per cent more than normal and the best weekly rains in the southwest monsoon season this year. This helped ease concern on drought across several parts of the country.
'If the authorities go about completing this project the way they have proposed, this is going to cause a HUGE environmental impact not only on Malabar Hill but also on the rest of the city.'
The suburban trains on the Central Railway's main line as well as the Harbour line are running 20 to 25 minutes behind their schedule, an official said.
While news on the monsoon front remains bleak (rainfall during June 1 to 17 was 45 per cent below normal), water levels in reservoirs across the country are dwindling, Citi economist Rohini Malkani said on Monday. Earlier this month, Citi revised its FY'10 GDP forecast for India to 6.8 per cent from 5.5 per cent and it raised its view to 7.8 per cent from 6.6 per cent for FY'11 on the back of election results and higher investment growth.
On May 15, the weather office had announced the onset of monsoon over Kerala by May 31.
For the current woes of the state to end, in city after city, town after town, village after village, unauthorised constructions have to be removed, no questions asked, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Maharashtra government on Tuesay banned digging of borewell below 200 feet in view of the acute water crisis in the state.
Awaiting the outcome of a meeting convened by the Centre, Karnataka Cabinet on Wednesday decided to defer till Thursday a decision on release of 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu as per the Supreme Court direction.
Chief Minister M K Stalin inspected several inundated areas here along with top officials including Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu and directed authorities to take swift action to drain flood water.
District authorities in old Tehri town today began evacuating residents, after the water level in the Bhagirathi river reservoir of the 2400 mw Tehri hydel project crossed the danger level and inundated several areas
The Sikkim Government has confirmed that 14 people have died so far in the flash floods that occurred in Sikkim in the early hours of Wednesday.
If only you had thought ahead, you would have stocked snacks and biscuits, bread and cake, and vegetables suited for Amma or pondatti to make your favourite bajji and pakoda, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Sowing of kharif crops begins with the onset of southwest monsoon from June, while harvesting starts from October. Rice is the main kharif crop, besides bajra, arhar, urad, moong, groundnut and soyabean.
Incessant showers caused landslides and floods in various parts of the country leaving at least 17 people dead on Wednesday while thousands more were forced to move to safety as rivers swelled and water reservoirs filled up fast.
After 17 years and Rs 7,300 crore (Rs 73 billion) of investment, the countdown has finally begun for power generation in Tehri Dam and Hydro Power Plant, India's largest and yet one of the most controversial hydroelectric projects.
The total water stock in the country's 81 major reservoirs is still 57 per cent of their live storage capacity, falling 12 per cent short of the normal level for this time. This is a cause for concern for both irrigation and hydro power production.
After discussions Behar offered Patkar lemon juice to end her hunger strike in support of the Sardar Sarovar Dam affected persons.
The impact of weak monsoon so far this year on India's farm production and economy is likely to be limited, the central bank said, as rainfall levels have improved considerably over the past one month.
To ensure immediate cooling of the body, the hospital has set up a first-of-its-kind heatstroke unit.
With the Congress in power in the state and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) snapping at its heels, the BRS is now fighting an existential battle.
It's not just South Africa's Cape Town which is going dry. Here are 10 other cities that are most likely to run out of drinking water.
The Group of Ministers constituted for the creation of a separate state of Telangana on Wednesday discussed the sharing of river water and irrigation resources in Andhra Pradesh after the state's bifurcation, but failed to arrive at a resolution.
Cairn India, which found India's largest oil field in Rajasthan in over 30 years, has discovered a saline water reservoir near its oil field that will help pump crude oil to the ground level and enhance production.
Today, with the Lok Sabha polls only months away, any inter-state dispute over the Cauvery water dispute has the potential to take more political turns than otherwise, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Holding Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik responsible for the devastating flood in Orissa, Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday said almost half of the state was submerged by the Mahanadi river system due to "mismanagement of water" at Hirakud reservoir, bringing miseries to lakhs of people.
The threshold for a heat wave is met when the maximum temperature of a weather station reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees in coastal areas, and 30 degrees in hilly regions, and the departure from normal is at least 4.5 notches.
When the rains fail in Karnataka not only does it affect the people of the state but it also has a disastrous effect on its neighbouring states.
Flood situation in Andhra Pradesh improved today as water levels receded substantially, Chief Minister K Rosaiah said Monday night.
With the southern districts of Ganjam, Gajapati and Kandhamal receiving heavy rainfall due to cyclone Hudhud, the local administration has started preparations for floods if such a situation arises.
Stepping up their campaign on the Mullaperiyar issue, Union Ministers from Kerala on Monday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, seeking his intervention in ensuring the saftey of the 116-year-old dam. Union Ministers Vayalar Ravi, K V Thomas, K C Venugopal,Mullapally Ramachandran and E Ahamed met Dr Singh with a demand to rein in Tamil Nadu's insistence on increasing the water level in the reservoir for enhancing water supply to the state.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde reviewed the rain situation on Tuesday and said over 3,500 people had been shifted to safer places from flood-prone and vulnerable spots across the state, where several districts, including Mumbai, experienced downpour.
Nearly 6,000 passengers were stranded as train services on the Konkan Railway route in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district were suspended on Thursday after a river overflowed following heavy rains, while incessant downpour badly hit road and rail traffic in several parts of the state, including around Mumbai, as authorities called in NDRF to help the administration in rescue efforts.
