All schools in Allahabad and Ballia have been asked to shut down for the next couple of days after the flood situation worsened across the state, reported IANS. While Allahabad District Magistrate Sanjay Kumar ordered schools to remain closed for two days, those in Ballia will not open before August 27.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Response Force personnel are carrying out relief and rescue operations in the five flood-hit districts of Gonda, Ballia, Varanasi, Balrampur and Allahabad. Indian Air Force choppers are being used to drop relief material, food and other commodities in the flood-hit areas. The government has also sanctioned Rs 23.84 crore for relief work, reported The Indian Express.

According to district officials, at least 43 people have died so far in rain-related incidents in eastern Uttar Pradesh while more than 16 lakh people have been affected by the floods. Water from the Ganga entered Allahabad city and inundated houses in more than 45 localities, and the Army was called in to evacuate people after an embankment breached in Ballia on Monday. In Varanasi, the Varuna river is flowing above danger mark. More than 200 villages have been affected and 500 houses are submerged.

Officials of the Central Water Commission told The Indian Express that both the Ganga and Yamuna rivers have crossed the danger mark at several places. Allahabad Additional District Magistrate Ram Sahai Yadav said, “The water level of Yamuna and Ganga is not stable. The situation is likely to improve in the coming days, as no dams are releasing more water.”