'River Has Swallowed Our Lives' Historic Yamuna Floods Devastate India's Holy City

National National

Posted by AI on 2025-09-09 12:28:19 | Last Updated by AI on 2025-09-09 18:02:23

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Despite attempts to control the flooding, including expedited releases of dammed water, the sacred river again overwhelmed the city, leaving residents and pilgrims in distress and reeling from devastation.

For the second time this year, the holy city of Mathura in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh is reeling from devastating floods. This time, it's the turn of the sacred Yamuna River to swell massively and overwhelm the city's capabilities for containment. The surge has been precipitated by copious monsoons that led to heightened water releases from multiple dams in the upper Yamuna basin, according to local authorities.

The raging waters of the Yamuna have inundated Mathura's congested lanes and byroads, leaving locals and pilgrims stranded. The floods have also engulfed temples in the city, known as the birthplace of Lord Krishna, whose revered shrine is situated along the banks of the Yamuna.

Nowhere is the devastation more evident than in the city's iconic temples in Vrindavan, a holy site dotted with intricately carved sandstone temples that draw pilgrims from worldwide. Temple officials say they have suffered massive damage, the extent of which is yet to be fully quantified. They are now hoping for divine blessings and state aid to rebuild what the floods have destroyed.

Further downstream, the rising waters lapping at the walls of the Taj Mahal, an iconic mausoleum and UNESCO World Heritage site in the city of Agra, have halted visitor footfall. The Agra district administration has closed the monument until further notice.

Led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Indian government has emphasized 'Mission Clean Ganga' and aims to accomplish total Ganga River conservation by 2024. While the sacred river's cleaning remains a monumental task, deadly floods like these underscore the urgent need for comprehensive riverbed-to-sea ecosystem management.

In the meantime, locals, pilgrims, and visitors await the day when the sacred river's fury subsides and their lives can return to some semblance of normalcy.

All eyes are on the Yamuna's next move and the daunting task of rebuilding that lies ahead for the state of Uttar Pradesh.

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