Severe flooding in Bihar has pushed the Ganges and its tributaries to record or near-record levels, deepening a humanitarian crisis that has left an estimated 3.4 million people affected and many communities cut off by high water. Officials have confirmed five drowning deaths in Patna district and emergency teams continue to rescue stranded residents and respond to breached embankments.
River Gauges Break Records
By 6 a.m. local time on 6 September, the Ganges at Pandarak reached 144.1 ft (43.92 m), exceeding the earlier record of 143.5 ft (43.73 m) set on 16 August 2021. At Gandhi Ghat in Patna the gauge climbed to 165.9 ft (50.57 m), slightly above the previous high of 165.7 ft (50.52 m) from 21 August 2016. On 8 September, Bihar’s real-time flood-monitoring system recorded a new peak at Sultanganj of 120.77 ft (36.81 m), topping the station’s prior best of 120.57 ft (36.75 m).
Impact and Human Cost
Access remains severely disrupted across parts of Patna district. Diara panchayats in Maner, Danapur, Raghopur and Panapur are surrounded by floodwater, and village links to district headquarters have been cut in Mokama, Athmalgola, Fatuha and Bakhtiyarpur. Officials confirmed five drowning fatalities linked to the floods — three in Maner and two in Danapur — as communities remain isolated.
Damage, Rescues and Local Incidents
All 10 people aboard a boat in Bhagalpur district were rescued after it capsized on 8 September in the Kharik–Raghopur area; the vessel was carrying fodder on the Ganges at Raghopur Diara in Naugachia block. State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams carried out the rescues.
Flood defenses have been damaged elsewhere: on 5 September Akashvani reported a 66-foot (20 m) stretch of the Mahi River embankment near Trilokchak was damaged. Subsequent reports said Mahi floodwater inundated more than 12 villages near Semrahia, and a ring bund on the Daha River was breached near Imadpur Bind Toli, affecting additional settlements.
Forecast and Official Response
Authorities continue to monitor river gauges in real time: some stations are receding (Gandhi Ghat, Buxar, Munger), Bhagalpur remained steady, while Kahalgaon was still rising and Sultanganj stayed above its earlier highest level. The India Meteorological Department’s Meteorological Centre in Patna placed Bihar under a heavy-rain warning on 8 September and forecast more heavy rain, thunderstorms and squally conditions through 9–10 September.
With large areas still cut off, embankments breached and more rain expected, relief and recovery operations remain urgent. Emergency teams and local authorities are prioritizing rescues, repairs to flood defenses and relief to affected communities as river levels are closely watched.
