MUMBAI, Aug. 17 -- Various parts of the state, including rain-deficit Marathwada, witnessed a heavy downpour since Friday evening, resulting in a rise in the water levels of dams and reservoirs. The downpour, however, claimed at least six lives, including two in suburban Mumbai on account of house collapses, while the others were because of various other rain-related mishaps. Apart from Konkan including Mumbai, where the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had forecast red and orange alerts for Friday and Saturday, other places that recorded heavy rainfall were Nanded and Beed in Marathwada, Sangli and Kolhapur in western Maharashtra, Dhule and Jalgaon in North Maharashtra, and Gadchiroli and Nagpur in Vidarbha. Almost all the 36 districts have been issued orange and yellow alerts for the next three days till August 19. A few rivers in Ratnagiri, Raigad, Vidarbha and Marathwada crossed their warning levels, and the district administrations had to issue instructions to villagers residing on the banks to take due precautions. In some villages in districts like Nanded, the district administration evacuated families living close to river banks to safer places. Based on the incidence of heavy rainfall with gusty winds in the state between August 16 and 21, the state government has published helpline numbers (9321587143, 022-22027990) for citizens in need of help. "The Amba river in Raigad has crossed its danger level while Kundalika in Raigad and the Jagbudi and Kodavali rivers in Ratnagiri have crossed their warning level," said an official from the disaster management cell of the state government. "The district administrations have told citizens to take all the necessary precautionary measures for their safety." IMD has forecast heavy rainfall in Konkan and the ghat regions of Central Maharashtra and heavy to very heavy rainfall with thunder, lightning and strong winds in Marathwada for the next five days. The state administration reported six deaths on Friday and Saturday, including two in suburban Mumbai due to house collapses, one in Yavatmal due to lightning and three in Nanded due to wall collapse and drowning. Three persons are reported to have been injured in suburban Mumbai. The state administration has repositioned the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams by deploying three teams for Mumbai and shifting one team each to Ratnagiri, Raigad, Karad, Sangli, Kolhapur, Sindhudurg, Gadchiroli, Nanded, Kalyan and Thane. Of the 18 rescue and relief teams, with more than 100 people in each team, two of the teams have been stationed at NDRF's Pune headquarters. The rainfall districts of Marathwada, including Beed and Latur, have been witnessing heavy rainfall since Friday. "The downpour in tehsils like Majalgaon has resulted in many rivers overflowing and has caused damage to the standing crops of soyabean and pulses," said a revenue officer from Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar Division. "The rain has, however, resulted in the rise of the water level of dams like Jayakwadi, which is 93% full, and Panganga which is 95% full." Nanded was one of the most affected districts in Marathwada, with 10 tehsils recording heavy rainfall in the last two days. "The district has reported three deaths, two due to house collapses in Kandhar and one where a school van driver drowned in Kinwat. Many villages in Deglur,...