Karmactive StaffOver 5,500 people have been rescued from floodwaters across South Gujarat in the 48 hours leading up to July 26, 2026, as the Indian Army, National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, Indian Coast Guard, and Indian Air Force conduct coordinated rescue operations across Navsari, Valsad, and Surat districts.
In Navsari district, the Indian Coast Guard airlifted people from rooftops in Mendhar village after floodwaters cut off road access. A separate Coast Guard helicopter operation in Navsari airlifted at least 60 shrimp farmers and salt pan workers stranded in remote flood-hit areas, with no road or boat access possible given the depth and speed of the floodwaters. Six Indian Army teams are deployed across Ahmedabad, Navsari, and Valsad, with two teams stationed in each district handling the heaviest affected zones.
The scale of the flooding across South Gujarat has made the rescues logistically complex. As of July 26, over 38,600 people have been evacuated to shelter camps and safer locations. Five deaths have been confirmed across Gujarat from flood-related incidents during this period. Rivers across the state are flowing above danger levels, with the Ambica and Par rivers in Valsad and Navsari particularly swollen due to upstream reservoir releases compounding the rainfall accumulation.
Valsad district received more than 100 centimetres of rainfall in a single 24-hour period, an extreme figure even by active monsoon standards. This kind of rainfall concentration overwhelms drainage systems and causes water to accumulate faster than it can be evacuated. Navsari recorded similarly acute rainfall, triggering rapid urban flooding in Bilimora and surrounding towns. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi are personally monitoring operations and directing relief efforts.
The Indian Air Force is conducting rescue operations in Vadodara, while the Indian Coast Guard carries out aerial surveys over flood-affected areas in Navsari, Valsad, and Tapi districts to identify pockets of stranded population unreachable by boat or vehicle. NDRF teams were additionally airlifted from Odisha to reinforce Gujarat operations, indicating the scale of deployment required. Forty-nine rescue teams in total are active across the state.
In Navsari city, fire department personnel rescued 20 people from a submerged residential society. In a separate operation near Rajpipla, 21 people stranded on the Karjan river bank were rescued in a joint operation between state and central agencies. The diversity of rescue scenarios—rooftop airlifts, river bank rescues, residential society extractions, farm worker evacuations—illustrates how comprehensively flooding has penetrated both urban and rural areas.
South Gujarat’s flooding is part of the broader monsoon crisis affecting 17 Indian states simultaneously. The India Meteorological Department has issued red alerts for Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh, with the IMD forecasting rainfall exceeding 204.5 millimetres in isolated areas. Two active low-pressure systems combined with a western disturbance are intensifying the monsoon across a large geographic area. In neighbouring Assam, 61 deaths have been reported and 872 villages submerged, demonstrating that the monsoon’s current intensity is exceptional across multiple regions simultaneously.
Rescue operations are expected to continue into coming days as water levels remain elevated. Residents in Navsari, Valsad, and Surat districts have been advised to remain at designated shelter camps and avoid returning to flooded areas until official clearance is issued. Medical teams are stationed at relief centres to address waterborne illness risks that typically follow large-scale flooding events.
