The Ganga flood situation in Bihar worsened on Tuesday with the floodwaters inundating fresh areas and affecting lakhs of people. It sent chief minister Nitish Kumar flying to inspect the situation in Khagaria and Bhagalpur districts.

At present 16 out of 38 districts including Buxar, Bhojpur, Patna, Saran, Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Begusarai, Khagaria, Darbhanga, Saharsa, Bhagalpur, Munger, Lakhisarai and Katihar are facing the deluge.

Bhagalpur and Khagaria are the latest areas to face the floods due to the Ganga that is flowing above the danger level in the state. The river’s strong flow has ruptured embankments, have cut-off various roads and national highways, and is threatening railway bridges.

Sixteen people have been killed so far in the floods that have affected 27 lakh people living in around 2200 villages in these districts. Around 88 thousand of them have been displaced from their homes.

“During the aerial survey, I saw that a large number of people in Bhagalpur district have been affected by the floods. Increase the number of flood relief centres as required and also ensure that the number of people staying at a centre is limited so that nobody experiences discomfort,” Nitish instructed Bhagalpur district magistrate Subrat Kumar Sen.

Talking to media persons after inspecting relief centres, camps and community kitchens, Nitish pointed out that he was touring the flood-affected areas to take a first hand account of the situation.

“We keep on issuing guidelines for the affected areas. The state government is providing a financial help of Rs 6000 to every flood-affected family. Food and accommodation is being provided at the relief camps. Special attention is being given to pregnant women staying at such camps,” Nitish said.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar at a flood relief camp in a government high school at Bharatkhand in Khagaria district on Tuesday Sanjay Choudhary

The chief minister added that the state government was providing an assistance of Rs 10,000 for every boy and Rs 15,000 for every girl born at the flood relief camps.

Meanwhile, the railways has cancelled 10 express and two passenger trains, changed the routes of 15 long-distance trains, and decided to terminate and start a couple of other trains from stations other than their pre-scheduled ones on the Jamalpur–Sahebganj and Jamalpur–Bhagalpur sections of the Malda division.

“These temporary steps have been taken due to heavy rains and the increasing water level at different railway bridges,” East Central Railway chief public relations officer Rajesh Kumar said.

The water resources department informed that the left embankment along the Ganga in Gopalpur block in Naugachhia sub-division of Bhagalpur has collapsed due to extreme pressure of water on it. Its officials are taking steps to contain the flow of water that was still spreading all around, inundating villages, roads and agriculture fields.

Most of the other major flood-bringing rivers like Kosi, Bagmati, Kamla Balan, Burhi Gandak, Punpun, Adhwara, and Khiroi were flowing below the danger level at several places in the state.

The only glimmer of hope was that the level of Ganga was showing a falling trend from Buxar to Patna, reducing the chances of the flood situation further aggravating in these districts. The mighty river will start calming down in the lower reaches from Patna onwards over the next couple of days.