With the Ganga flowing at 72.43 metres on Friday afternoon, 5.71 metres above its normal level in Varanasi and 1.17 metres above the danger mark, Manikarnika Ghat and Harishchandra Ghat, the most important places under Hindu tradition for cremation where last rites normally take place round the clock, are weathering scenes never seen before. WhileManikarnika ghat is completely submerged and the rooftop of a marooned structure is being used for cremation, at Harishchandra, cremation is taking place a fair distance off the ghat – on a narrow street in a residential area. The famous evening aarti of the Ganga performed at Dashashwamedh Ghat, which attracts hordes of people, has meanwhile been shifted to the terrace of the office of Ganga Seva Nidhi, which organises the aarti. Water there has reached the roads, and several shops lie partially submerged. At Manikarnika, bodies are brought to the makeshift, rooftop crematorium on boats, and boatmen are charging Rs 200 to ferry each body. The charge is the same for ferrying woods for cremation, while each person crossing the water on boat to attend cremation is being asked to pay Rs 40. The wait is long. "I have come from Ballia for my father's cremation and I am waiting for more than two hours because the rooftop is not vacant," said Vijay Kushwaha, a small trader. At Harishchandra Ghat, with the electric crematorium submerged, last rites are being conducted on Pitambarpur street, off the ghat. The makeshift crematorium is just outside the house of Vidhya Devi (55), who is in the middle of nightmares all day long — there's the smell and smoke of the pyres round the clock, and the sight of bodies each time she comes out. Ravi Chaudhary, a 'dom' (people who conduct cremations, said far fewer bodies are arriving since the water level began rising. On Friday, the water level in the Ganga was only 1.47 metres below the highest mark ever recorded at Varanasi – back in 1978. The good news for the locals, though, is that water began receding from Friday afternoon despite four hours of sharp showers in the morning. The Assi Ghat, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the local MP, had began his government's cleanliness campaign two years ago, and which is also the venue of the spiritual and cultural event 'Subah-e-Banaras', is completely submerged. The rising water level has made islands out of several temples and hotels in the vicinity. The morning Ganga aarti of Assi Ghat is being performed some 100 metres from the main ghat road. The cultural programmes are held in a nearby temple. For the Dashashwamedh Ghat aarti, visitors, mostly foreigners these days, are being taken to the terrace of the building that houses the Ganga Seva Nidhi's office through narrow streets, and seating arrangements have been made for nearly 100 people, Regional Tourism Officer of Varanasi Arvind Mishra said. All schools have been declared closed until Sunday, and District Magistrate Vijay Kiran Anand said flood-affected people have been shifted to safe places and temporary shelter homes. Four NDRF teams have been deployed in the affected areas, he added. In a statement issued today, Divisional Commissioner Nitin Gokarn said around 2.16 lakh people in 171 villages of Varanasi have been affected by the flood. At least 60 villages lie marooned and 66,418 hectares of land have been affected, according to the administration's estimation. A flood control room has been set up at the DM's camp office, and another at the constituency office of Prime Minister Modi. The latter, which began functioning on August 23, has so far received more than 300 complaints, with callers seeking help with drinking water, food, medicines, boats and power supply. The PM's personal assistant Tanmay Mehta and C R Patil, the BJP MP from Navsari in Gujarat, visited Modi's constituency office on Friday with sweets from Gujarat for the flood-affected people – and also to monitor operations at the control room. Member of Legislative Council and BJP's Kashi region president Laxman Acharya said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) is also monitoring the flood situation of Varanasi and the control room is regularly sending reports to the PMO.
