Heavy Rains Cause Tragic Incidents and Infrastructure Damage in Jharkhand

Ranchi/Jamshedpur, Jun 19 (PTI): The bodies of two schoolboys, trapped under debris for over 22 hours after a well collapsed due to heavy rains in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, were recovered on Thursday, confirmed an official.

Additionally, a 10-year-old girl lost her life after a mud house caved in due to torrential rain in Ranchi district, according to police reports.

Continuing rains across Jharkhand have led to further infrastructure damage, including the collapse of a bridge and an unused residential building in different districts, though no casualties resulted from these events. Rivers throughout the state are swelling significantly.

The two schoolboys, both aged nine and 10, were near an under-construction well in Murhu panchayat under Murhu police station’s jurisdiction when it collapsed around 2 PM on Wednesday.

Khunti Deputy Commissioner R Ronita stated that a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team was deployed for their rescue operation.

Efforts to rescue the boys persisted since Wednesday night, with their bodies being retrieved around 12:30 PM on Thursday, an official added.

In a separate incident, a 10-year-old girl died when her mud house gave way amid the heavy rains in Murpa village, situated in Ranchi district’s Tamar police station area.

She was alone at home when the accident occurred, police disclosed.

The downpour resulted in the partial collapse of a bridge over the Banai River in Khunti's Torpa, obstructing the Khunti-Simdega road.

A diversion was created, and an NDRF team was positioned at the location, said Ronita.

Several districts, including Ranchi, Seraikela-Kharswan, and East Singhbhum, experienced heavy rainfall, causing disruption to daily life.

Amidst the ongoing deluge, schools in multiple districts such as Ranchi and Khunti were closed on Thursday.

Ranchi has been subjected to relentless rainfall over the past two days, with an increase in intensity since Thursday morning, explained a weather official.

Moreover, an abandoned residential building formerly belonging to Tayo Rolls Company, a Tata Steel subsidiary, collapsed on Thursday morning in Gamharia, Seraikela-Kharsawan district.

Tata Steel released a statement declaring the building had been previously vacated, barricaded, and deemed unsafe for occupancy.

An alert was issued for Jamshedpur due to the increased levels of the Kharkhai and Swarnarekha rivers, resulting from incessant rainfall over the last two days.

The water in both rivers is nearing the danger mark, as declared in an official statement on Thursday.

Residents in East Singhbhum’s catchment areas along these rivers have been urged to remain vigilant by the district administration.

Abhishek Anand, the Deputy Director at Ranchi Meteorological Centre, stated that a red alert for extremely heavy rainfall has been issued for Ranchi, Lohardaga, Gumla, Khunti, and Simdega, due to a low-pressure system hovering over northeast Jharkhand.

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