Bhubaneswar/Baleshwar: The state government has shifted around 1.4 lakh people to safer locations over the past four days, as a fresh wave of fl ood affected several districts, officials said Monday.
Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said the government has evacuated 1.4 lakh people from low-lying areas across 7,834 villages under 1,360 gram panchayats. In addition, 219 wards in 38 urban local bodies (ULBs) have also been affected.
Officials said River Mahanadi also experienced a “minor flood” that crisscrossed the densely populated coastal districts, after release of excess water from Hirakud Dam. Water Resources department engineer-in-chief Dilip Kumar Rout said a “minor fl ood” in River Mahanadi takes place when around 8 lakh cusecs of water fl ows at the Mundali gauge station near Kataka.
“The flow of over 10 lakh cusecs at Mundali is considered a major flood in the Mahanadi,” he said. Rout said the district administrations of Kataka, Khordha, Puri, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapada have been alerted, as the swelling water level could inundate several villages in the Mahanadi delta region. Lakhs of people in the northern districts of Baleshwar, Bhadrak, Jajpur and Mayurbhanj have already been reeling under the deluge, due to flooding in Subarnarekha, Budhabalang, Jalaka, Baitarani, Salandi and their tributaries, the officials said.
The minister, however, said the government expects the situation to improve within the next 24 hours, as water levels in several rivers have started to recede. Commenting on the worst-hit Baleshwar district, Collector Suryawanshi Mayur Vikas said: “Over 3.5 lakh people in 11 blocks have been impacted by the floods in river Subarnarekha, Budhabalang and Jalaka rivers. More than 67,000 people have been evacuated from Bhograi, Jaleshwar, Baliapal, Baleshwar, Remuna, Nilagiri and Sora blocks.”
Rout said rivers in northern Odisha, including the Subarnarekha, were flowing below the danger mark. Pujari said a total of 64 response teams have been deployed in the affected areas.