Rains, flooding force schools to shut in MP, Rajasthan districts, Odisha's Balasore too hit

Thunderstorms and floods continued to pummel Odisha while the monsoon's fury touched new grounds on Monday, throwing life out of gear in parts of MP and Rajasthan.
The swollen Subarnarekha river started receding on Monday, but it did little to alleviate the suffering of people in affected areas of Balasore district, where nearly 40,000 have been evacuated to safer locations amid widespread flooding and a drinking water crisis.
"People in pucca houses have also been asked to move to safer places," Balasore district collector Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde said.
"Nearly 156 villages in the district have been hit. The situation could worsen as the IMD predicting heavy rainfall in north Odisha districts in the next 24 hours. The state recorded moderate to heavy rainfall at several districts in the past 24 hours with maximum 110mm at Banki in Cuttack district.
In Madhya Pradesh, heavy rain battered many parts for the third day Monday, resulting in schools being closed in some districts including state capital Bhopal and Jabalpur. IMD had issued a red alert for Monday.
Rivers were in spate in large parts of the state and gates of many dams were opened to release water.
The IMD has advised people to avoid travelling.
Bhopal received 190.5 mm rainfall in the past 24r hours.
Rains coupled with wind uprooted many trees along roadsides in Bhopal, and also caused power supply disruptions in many areas as well as traffic snarls.
In Rajasthan, heavy rain led to a flood-like situation in Kota, Jhalawar and surrounding districts, officials said.