PATNA, Sept. 5 -- The flood situation in Bihar remained grim on Friday as the Ganga and its tributaries, particularly the Punpun and Dardha, continued to inundate low-lying areas of Patna and beyond. Hundreds of villages across roughly a dozen districts were affected, with the disaster management department (DMD) placing eight - Bhojpur, Patna, Saran, Vaishali, Nalanda, Begusarai, Lakhisarai and Jehanabad - on high alert. Rising waters were also reported in Bhagalpur, Munger, Khagaria, Katihar and adjoining riverine stretches, said the DMD statement. By late afternoon the Ganga at Gandhi Ghat stood at 50.38 metres, nearly 1.8 metres above the danger level of 48.60 metres and just 14 centimetres short of its highest flood level of 50.52 metres. It had risen earlier before steadying. At Hathidah the level touched 43.31 metres and was still climbing, more than 1.5 metres above danger. Digha Ghat recorded 51.73 metres, while the river hovered near its record mark at Maner. Official gauges showed the Ganga above danger and rising or steady at Buxar, Munger, Bhagalpur, Kahalgaon and Farakka. Upstream at Prayagraj a slight decline offered the first tentative hope of relief downstream. The Sone and Ganga had already breached danger marks, submerging several riverine villages. In Patna, several ghats stood submerged and traffic on lower riverfront stretches was halted. Authorities sealed approaches, barred people from flooded roads and inundated ghats, and deployed SDRF and police teams. The department advised the public to avoid unnecessary movement near the river. The Punpun at Sripalpur reached 53.20-53.21 metres - more than 2.5 metres above its danger level of 50.60 metres - and continued rising. The Dardha at Kolhachak remained well over danger. Earlier, Indrapuri Barrage on the Sone had opened all 69 gates, releasing about 4.84 lakh cusecs that surged towards Maner, Danapur and the capital's southern approaches. Heavy releases from Valmiki Nagar on the Gandak and Birpur on the Kosi kept those rivers above danger at multiple stations, while the Burhi Gandak at Khagaria also stayed high in spate. In Bhagalpur's Naugachia subdivision, the Raghopur-Kazikoraiya marginal embankment had already suffered a serious breach. Roughly 250 to 400 metres of the embankment were lost, with the deep main channel edging closer to the railway line and floodwaters entering diara villages. Scores of families around Raghopur faced inundation. In Bind Toli, inside Patna's protection wall, water entered hundreds of homes. About 5,000 residents - many resettled years earlier on small plots - abandoned their houses and sat under plastic sheets on the elevated Marine Drive stretch of the JP Ganga Path. "There is no dry place left inside," one woman said, sitting with three children and a few utensils. "We took what we could. The rest is under water." Across the river in Danapur, diara panchayats including Ganghara, Hetanpur, Kasimchak, Purani Panapur, Patlapur, Manas and Akilpur stood three to four feet deep. Roads vanished, cattle stood in water and fodder was scarce. Residents urged the district magistrate and local MLA for boat services, fodder and relief, noting they could neither reach markets nor transport patients. Two panchayats in Maner and several villages in Maner block were similarly cut off. Parallel scenes unfolded in Vaishali's Raghopur diara, low-lying pockets of Saran, Begusarai, Bhojpur (where around 40 gram panchayats were surrounded) and Bhagalpur. Some families had begun temporary migration. Chief minister Samrat Choudhary conducted an aerial survey of the affected areas on Friday and reviewed rescue and relief operations. He directed officials to ensure swift assistance so that people faced no difficulties and lives and property were protected. Later he chaired a high-level review, ordering district magistrates and superintendents of police to remain in their districts, prepare lists of affected families and deliver immediate relief. Community kitchens and camps were to function without lapse, with continuous monitoring of embankments from Buxar to Bhagalpur. The command centre was linked to the chief minister's dashboard for real-time oversight. In Patna district alone more than 70 boats operated free of charge, assisted by SDRF teams. Relief camps and community kitchens functioned at multiple locations, with arrangements for drinking water, medical care, toilets, fodder and veterinary support. Embankment strengthening continued where water levels permitted. Water resources department (WRD) officials said the Sone was expected to ease in the coming days and that the declining trend at Prayagraj should gradually reflect downstream. Meteorological forecasts indicated no heavy rainfall in the immediate week, though moderate rain remained possible over parts of north and central Bihar and Nepal catchments....