Chhattisgarh Rains: Deadly Floods in Bastar Claim Lives, Isolate Villages
Floods in Bastar kill 4 and isolate villages.
Torrential rains have unleashed widespread flooding across Chhattisgarh’s Bastar division, claiming the lives of a family of four and leaving one person missing, while isolating over 100 villages in Bastar, Bijapur, and Dantewada districts. The disaster, reported on August 27, 2025, has triggered extensive rescue and relief efforts, with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), helicopters, and boats deployed to evacuate stranded residents and provide aid.
In a tragic incident on Tuesday evening, a family of four—Rajesh Kumar G (43), his wife Pavithra (40), and their daughters Saujainya (7) and Saumaiyya (4)—perished when their car was swept away by powerful currents while crossing the flooded Kanger Nala culvert in Kanger Valley National Park, Bastar district.
Rajesh, a contractor from Tamil Nadu based in Raipur, was on an outing with his family. The car’s driver, Lala Yadu, survived by clinging to a tree branch and was later rescued. The bodies of the family were recovered late Tuesday after water levels subsided. In a separate incident in Bijapur district, a man was swept away while crossing the overflowing Cherpal stream, with search efforts ongoing to locate him.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, currently on a visit to Japan, conducted telephonic reviews with Revenue Secretary Reena Babasaheb Kangale and Bastar Division Commissioner Doman Singh, directing intensified rescue and relief operations. “Public safety is our top priority,” Sai stated, emphasizing the state’s commitment to protecting citizens. He instructed district collectors to maintain high alert status, particularly in low-lying areas, and ensure prompt evacuation to safer locations.
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The heavy downpour has caused rivers and rivulets, including the Indravati and Chhot rivers, to swell, disrupting connectivity to district headquarters and flooding downstream areas in Sukma, Bijapur, and Dantewada. Over 100 villages in each of these districts remain cut off, with national highways and local roads submerged at multiple points. In Bastar’s Lohandiguda, Darbha, and Tokapal blocks, 21 villagers were rescued from Mandar village, and others were evacuated using helicopters and motor-powered boats operated by SDRF and Home Guard personnel.
The district administration has mobilized resources to address the crisis, with SDRF teams and police working tirelessly to relocate approximately 70 people to safety over the past 36 hours. Authorities have also deployed motorboats to assist residents in crossing flooded areas, particularly where infrastructure damage has halted vehicular movement.
The ongoing heavy rains, which have battered the seven districts of Bastar division—Bastar, Kanker, Narayanpur, Kondagaon, Dantewada, Bijapur, and Sukma—highlight the region’s vulnerability to monsoon-related disasters. The state government remains on high alert, with officials monitoring river levels and coordinating relief efforts to mitigate further loss of life and property.
As rescue operations continue, the focus remains on ensuring the safety of affected communities and restoring connectivity to isolated villages.
