Floodwaters have inundated parts of Kanpur, turning neighbourhoods into waterlogged islands, but Uttar Pradesh minister Sanjay Kumar Nishad has called the ordeal a divine blessing.

“Mother Ganga comes to wash the feet of Ganga-putras… Ganga-putras go straight to heaven,” the minister said while touring Bhognipur village near Yamuna river, even as locals struggled with the deluge.

Villagers were explaining the damage to their homes to the Nishad party leader, when he misidentified the Yamuna for the Ganga.

On X, one user wrote: “This shows that ministers don't know anything about their own constituency and fool people.”

Another asked: “Are they considering flooding as a blessing in disguise?”

The brunt of the weather fury was visible in Kanpur even on Tuesday. Areas around Govind Nagar and Kidwai Nagar were especially hit, forcing local authorities to deploy emergency teams and pumping machines in a desperate attempt to drain out floodwater.

Visuals showed vehicles nearly submerged, emergency teams scrambling to pump out water and citizens trudging through waist-deep water.

Last week, Chandradeep Nishad, a UP police officer and PSO to a high court judge, offered prayers to the floodwater that had entered his home, treating it as a divine visitation from Mother Ganga.

In videos shared on Instagram, he was seen in full uniform, sprinkling rose petals and pouring milk over the waterlogged street outside his residence, chanting “Jai Ganga Maiya ki.”

He wrote in his caption: “Mother Ganga arrived at our house while leaving for duty this morning. Got blessings by worshiping Maa Ganga at my doorstep.”

In another video, as water inside his home reached waist level, he swam through it, chanting praises for the river.

“Thousands of devotees come to you (Ganga), but you yourself came to bless me,” he says.

One user wrote: “Failure of UP government…no proper drainage system.”

Another noted: “If there is power in your devotion and in Mother Ganga, then she should never leave your home. We pray to Mother Ganga that she always remains in your house like this, so that you and your entire family may be truly blessed.”

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had already announced red alerts for multiple districts in east UP, and an orange alert across both east and west regions, predicting that the heavy downpour would continue for the next 24–36 hours.

The data pointed to a cyclonic circulation near the Bihar border and a monsoon trough now shifted north through Shamli, Lucknow, Kanpur and Ayodhya.