Heavy rains in the catchments areas of Nepal and adjoining areas for the last three days have led to water levels rising in north Bihar rivers, particularly the turbulent Kosi and Gandak rivers. The development has resulted in panic among people living in the riparian areas. With incessant rains, the Gandak received 3.43 lakh cusecs of water at Valmikinagar barrage while the Kosi recorded 1.48 lakh cusecs discharge near Birpur barrage on Saturday, causing some parts of Bagaha, Supaul and Sitamarhi to be flooded. A large number of people of the area have begun moving to safer places with their valuables. Similarly, hundreds of villages in Gopalganj, Muzaffarpur, Purnea, Araria, Saharsa and Madhepura face threats due to the increased water levels. "Water has already entered dozens of villages in Gopalganj and Muzaffarpur, and the rising trend of water level in Kosi river is giving sleepless nights to people", a group of people of the area whose memory of the 2008 Kosi catastrophe was still fresh, said. In 2008 the turbulent flood waters of Kosi river had played large scale of devastation and destruction after the bund at Kusaha in Nepal was breached. This time too, reports suggested that the eastern embankment on Kosi in Supaul and embankment on Gandak river at Simaria are facing threat from gushing water force. Similar is the situation at Pipra-Piprasi embankment at Bhitaha in West Champaran and Koerpatti embankment on the Gandak in East Champaran where the Government had put in extra effort to strengthen them. "The water level of rivers has been rising to dangerous levels at these places which is a dangerous sign", an official of the State Water Resources Department admitted. However, water resources department officials also said that, despite the heavy discharge of water in the Kosi river on the eastern side of the embankment in Indian territory was safe. "The embankment is safe because of the skilled maneuvering of the gates of the Birpur barrage", officials stated. Earlier, the department officials had planned to dig a pilot channel in the river's downstream in Saptari district to re-establish the central flow of the river but the plan could not be executed as the local Nepalese authorities protested saying they have not received the order for the same from senior officials". "Still, there is nothing to be panic about as even five lakh cusecs of discharge could not overtop the embankment", the department engineer-in-chief Rajeshwar Dayal reportedly stressed. Of late, department principal secretary Afzal Amanullah too has been constantly visiting the vulnerable spots and embankments passing necessary instruction to officials and engineers in the face of imminent flood fear. The State Government has in the meantime alerted engineers and district officials while asking them to keep constant vigil on embankments and rising water levels in the rivers. Hundreds of people have also been asked to shift to safer places by the authorities. "All district magistrates and engineers of flood-prone areas have been directed to maintain high vigil and have been told to be ready with necessary equipment and boulders to protect the embankments," SM Raju, divisional commissioner of Tirhut told The Pioneer.