'No Food, Water, Toilets': Delhi Residents Moved to Camps as Yamuna Floods

New Delhi: People help one another relocate to a safer place after their houses in the low-lying areas around the Yamuna river submerged.

(Photo: Screengrab from TheQuint's video)

Video Producer: Mayank Chawla

Video Editor: Mohd. Irshad Alam

"There is no arrangement for us in the relief camps. We live in low-lying areas so we are not treated as humans. This is how people from the middle class live and die."

A Delhi resident who was evacuated from a low-lying area

As the Yamuna's water level breached its warning mark and reached an all-time high of 207.55 m in Delhi, The Quint reached ground zero and spoke with those who are being evacuated from the low-lying areas of the city and taken to relief camps, as floodwaters wreck havoc in the city.

A Delhi resident who was moved to a camp in Kalindi Kunj told The Quint, "Our houses were submerged in water and we had to leave everything. We don’t have anything to eat or drink. We just saved ourselves and came here."

However, even as people are being evacuated, there are no provisions available for them at the relief camps. One of them said, "Right now, there is nothing here. Nothing to eat as well. We are hungry since morning."

They even said that the authorities haven't communicated to them till when they'd have to stay in these shelters.

Another dejected resident said, "This is a low-lying area. We shouldn’t have
dwelled here. There is no arrangement for us."

Amidst heavy rains and flooding, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, on 12 July, urged the Centre to intervene and ensure that no more water is released from Haryana's Hathnikund Dam.

The Delhi Police has imposed restrictions on public gatherings in flood-prone areas. Boats have been deployed to facilitate rescue operations as the NDRF troops help out citizens.

The level of water in the Yamuna river has been rising since 8 July and the flood situation comes at a time when north India has been grappling with torrential rains.