‘No threat to UP from Nepal floods’: State Jal Shakti minister says authorities remain on alert

NEW DELHI: Uttar Pradesh Jal Shakti minister Swatantra Dev Singh on Saturday informed that Nepal’s recent flood disaster poses no threat to the state, while stressing that authorities remained on alert.“ There is no threat to Uttar Pradesh from the flood disaster in Nepal, but we remain alert every moment and all our flood-affected districts are safe,” Singh told PTI at the district headquarters.Singh said embankments in the state had become safer since 2017 and claimed that flood-control projects were being completed on schedule.“

Before 2017, embankments used to breach, and there was heavy damage. After 2017, all our embankments are safe, and projects are being completed on time,” he said.He added that all flood-control projects had been completed and officials and employees remained alert.Yogi reviews UP flood situationUttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath on Saturday reviewed the flood situation in Ballia, conducted an aerial survey of affected areas and distributed relief material, assuring that no flood victim in the state would be allowed to face any hardship.According to a statement issued by the state government, excessive rainfall over the past few days has caused flooding in 26 districts, affecting more than 1.71 lakh people and 251 villages.

The chief minister said relief operations had been expedited, with more than 1,000 people shifted to flood shelters and 447 flood outposts established.What’s happening in Nepal? Nepal is continuing a large-scale search-and-rescue operation after flash floods and landslides struck the Nepal-Tibet border region, sweeping away villages, roads, bridges and other infrastructure.A glacier collapse on Wednesday sent a torrent of rock, ice, mud and debris into Himalayan river systems, triggering floods that swept through towns, destroyed bridges and roads, and damaged major hydropower stations.

More than 600 people have been killed, while over 2,000 remain unaccounted for.Nepal may need between $4 billion and $5 billion to rebuild after this week’s floods, Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle told Reuters on Saturday, with the estimated cost equivalent to nearly a tenth of the country’s economy.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.