Evacuees rue annual painful exercise

The Yamuna crossed the evacuation level of 206 metres for the first time this season

- Aaditya Khatwani

The Yamuna crossed the evacuation level of 206 metres for the first time this season at 4pm on Tuesday, foreing the government to begin shifting residents away from the swollen river.

Rows of tents were pitched on multiple roads near the banks as water entered homes and swept away belongings. Families sat exhausted, feeding children and trying to protect what little they had carried with them, while watching the steady downpour in silence.

The district administration said Tuesday night that over 10,000 people were evacuated and camps set up at 28 locations.

Residents said that while evacuation was something they had endured before, the process was no less painful. In east Delhi's Geeta Colony, tents were erected on both sides of the bridge.

“I was woken up in the middle of the night when the water entered my house. I quickly moved my belongings to higher ground, and came here around 6am,” said 62-year-old Sri Chand, a farmer who has lived in Geeta Colony since birth. He said space was a serious problem: “There is a severe lack of room. I am staying with my seven children in one tent, which we are sharing with another family.”