Bhagalpur, Aug. 17: Bihar water resources department has pressed the panic button after the swollen Ganga and Kosi created havoc in the northern parts of Bhagalpur district.

The floodwaters entered the low-lying areas of the city and disrupted functioning of some educational institutes like Bhagalpur College of Engineering (BCE) and others.

The spurt in the water level of Ganga has started posing threats on jamindari (embankments at Gopalpur, Bihpur and Narayanpur blocks of Naugachia sub-division in the district.

Achintya, the principal of BCE, has asked the inmates of the college hostels to vacate it and the college has been declared closed till August 27. Delhi Public School, Bhagalpur, too, has been closed as water entered the campus. Similarly, floodwater inundated the campus of CMS School as well. “We have to walk through Adampur Chowk because the approach road of our colony from Manik Sarkah Ghat road has been inundated,” said Ranjan Kumar, a resident of Bank Colony Adampur in the city.

According to the weather department, the flood situation is likely to worsen as moderate to heavy rain might lash the catchment areas of Ganga and Kosi in the next 24 hours. “The entire Naugachia sub-division has been alerted. All major embankments have been put under observation,” said Kailu Sardar, chief engineer of water resources department, Bhagalpur division.

Incessant rain

Intermittent rain for the past 24 hours has caused waterlogging in different colonies in Darbhanga. Even business has been hit hard. Waterlogging was witnessed at Darbhanga Tower Chowk, Lakshmi Sagar, Commercial Chowk and other lower parts.

Mohammad Murshid Ahmed, a shop owner said: “Rural customers do not turn up because of waterlogging and incessant rain.”