By IANS,
Lucknow : There is no cause for concern over the sudden emergence of long and deep fissures in the ground at various places in Uttar Pradesh, an official said Tuesday.
“After carrying out an on-the-spot survey of the affected locations in Bundelkhand, Allahabad and Lucknow, a team of experts was of the view that prima facie the cracks had developed due to the sudden recharge of groundwater as a consequence of heavy rainfall over a short duration,” Chief Secretary Atul Kumar Gupta told mediapersons here Tuesday evening.
The team included scientists from the Geological Survey of India (GSI).
The scientists, who returned from the worst affected areas of Bundelkhand region, were of the view that there was excessive withdrawal of groundwater on account of poor rainfall over the past 4-5 years.
This led to the creation of large volumes of carbon monoxide which blew out of the ground after the first heavy rain to cause fissures.
Gupta said: “Most of the ground fissures were seen close to rivers.”
He said: “In view of the large number of such incidents in different areas of the state, the GSI carried out different investigations of these cracks.”
The cracks were noticed after the season’s first heavy rainfall in Hamirpur district of Bundelkhand region towards the southern part of Uttar Pradesh. Reports of more such cracks followed from Allahabad while the latest one was seen in Kakori area on the outskirts of the state capital.
The longest fissure of about 400 metres was found in Hamirpur district. It was stated to be about 1.5 metres wide and up to 10 metres deep at some places.