A swelling Ganga river has inundated the temples on Varanasi ghats and forced cremations at the Manikarnika to be shifted to upper platforms, a Uttar Pradesh official said on Thursday. The river rose by over two metres in the last 24-hours. The famous Ganga Aarti from the boats has also been banned. It is flowing just two metres below the danger mark at 69.91m. The Sheetla temple and Ratneshwar Mahadev temple were submerged.

The water level of Varuna river here has also increased. It has flooded the old bridge area, Konia, Kazzakpur and many other low-lying areas. Three teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been pressed asked to keep a tab on the rising waters and brace for any eventuality.