Medium flood likely in Mahanadi; situation improving in west

Heavy rainfall in the lower catchments of the Mahanadi is likely to cause a "medium flood" in the river, while the situation in west Odisha eased on Wednesday with the intensity of rain subsiding and water receding from submerged areas, an official said. Mentioning that around 11 lakh cusecs water was flowing in Mahanadi at Khairamal on Tuesday night, Water Resources Secretary P K Jena said, it was likely to pass through Mundali barrage in Cuttack early on Thursday.

"A medium flood is expected in the system and there is no major threat. There is nothing much to worry, but people should be alert, Jena said. The district administrations in Bolangir, Subarnapur, Boudh, Angul, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Khordha, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Kendrapada and Jajpur have been asked to remain prepared to deal with the possible flood in the Mahanadi, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC), B P Sethi said.

As per Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's directive, the collectors of the 11 districts have been advised to intensify river embankment patrolling in view of the high volume of water likely to flow in Mahanadi river. Meanwhile, one sluice gate of the Hirakud Dam was opened for a few hours on Wednesday to release the first flood waters of the season.

"There is nothing much to worry as it will not lead to an alarming rise in the water level of the river," the SRC said. The water level at the dam was 618.21 feet as against the full reservoir capacity of 630 feet, while water inflow stood at 1,40,784 cusecs and outflow was 16,844 cusecs, he said.

To deal with the possible "medium flood", the collectors have been asked to immediately activate district emergency operation centres and control rooms of different departments which should function round the clock, he said. As many as 15 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) and three NDRF teams have been deployed in the districts which are likely to be affected, he said.

Fire service teams available in the districts may be deployed to carry out search and rescue operations and assist in evacuation operations. Meanwhile, the rain-battered districts of Boudh, Bolangir, Kalahandi, Kandhamal and Subarnapur were limping back to normalcy as the intensity of rain subsided and water started receding from the submerged areas, he said.

At least eight people have been killed in the state due to heavy rain triggered by formation of two back-to-back low pressure areas. The chief minister, who reviewed the heavy rain and flash flood situation in Bolangir, Kalahandi, Boudh, Subarnapur and Kandhamal on Tuesday, has announced gratuitous relief for seven days for the affected people in these districts.

While Rs 60 will be paid per adult person per day, Rs 45 would be given per day for each child, an official said. More than two lakh people were affected in the recent heavy rain and flash floods in 134 villages and six urban areas of 19 blocks spread over seven districts, the SRC said.

Nearly 50,000 people were evacuated from vulnerable and marooned areas to safe shelters and 124 free kitchens were opened for providing them with food, he said. Two districts recorded an average rainfall of over 100 mm since Tuesday, the SRC said. While Bolangir received 145.1 mm rainfall, Bargarh recorded 112.5 mm.

Bolangir block has recorded rainfall of 555 mm, maximum in the state during the period, followed by Puintala with 333 mm and Deogaon with 238 mm. All the blocks are located in Bolangir district..