Dry run: Irrigation dept looks to God

With all the 77 reservoirs under it in Rajkot circle about to hit the rock bottom,a helpless Irrigation Department on Monday chose to seek divine intervention.

From superintendent engineer to peon,every employee of the department was in attendance for a session of prayers led by the Gayarti Parivar at Bahumali Bhavan on Race Course Road. There is hardly any rainfall and no fresh inflow. So,the department just decided to seek divine intervention, said Superintendent Engineer P A Totlani.

Sources said special prayers were organised to worship Vayudev since it was the high velocity wind delayed the monsoon in Gujarat. Going by the figures we collect daily from all the dams scattered across seven districts in Saurashtra,the picture is getting gloomier with by the day. Offering prayers is one of the ways to improve things, said assistant engineer J C Kalaria.

At the programme,members of Gayatri Parivar chanted slokas seeking blessings of the rain God,which was followed by a session of Raag Malhar,believed to be a welcome note for the rain Gods.

At the flood control cell located in the same building,figures on the latest water levels in the dams,which are collected twice a day,paint a grim picture.

There has been fresh inflow only in one of the 77 dams. The collective water level in all the 77 dams at present is only around 6.5 per cent of the total holding capacity, said Totlani.

Rain in South Gujarat brings respite from heat
South Gujarat got respite from scorching heat on Tuesday,with the region receiving moderate rainfall in the last 24 hours. In Surat,rainfall started early in the morning and continued till late in the afternoon. Subsequently,waterlogging incidents were reported from different areas in the city.

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According to the flood control department of the Surat Municipal Corporation,13 mm rainfall was recorded between 6 am and 6 pm. One dead as lightning strikes in Dangs district

One dead as lightning strikes in Dangs district
One man died and two others were critically injured after lightning struck them in Dangs district in the last 24 hours. Gama Puwar (37),a resident of Kuttarchiniya village in Ahwa,was returning to home from the fields when the incident took place. He reportedly died on the spot. The injured have been identified as Ganga Mansu (40),a resident of Pipalner village,and Ravina Dalvi (14),a resident of Gundwahan village in Ahwa.

The were admitted in the government hospital in Ahwa with severe burn injuries. According to flood control room at Ahwa,1.5 mm rainfall was recorded in the taluka and 2 mm in Saputara.

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