Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi is scheduled to visit flood-hit Bhadrak and Jajpur districts Monday as the state remains on high alert following an IMD forecast of extremely heavy rain in the wake of the formation of a fresh low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal.
The state has evacuated more than 2.37 lakh people to safety as heavy rain continued for the second day, worsening the situation in several flood-hit northern districts, an official said.
Taking to X, Majhi said the government was closely monitoring the situation and that local administrations were carrying out rescue and relief operations.
Ensuring swift assistance reaches the affected people and their safety is our topmost priority. Tomorrow morning, I will visit the flood-affected areas to directly assess the situation. Please follow the administration’s directives and stay safe; the government is always with you, he said.
Majhi said three senior officers had been assigned to oversee rescue and relief operations in Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur, while the Special Relief Commissioner was coordinating with district administrations.
Chief Secretary Anu Garg, who reviewed the situation following the IMD forecast, said leave of all government employees had been cancelled and those on leave were asked to report for duty immediately.
We have asked the district collectors to remain on high alert as the IMD has forecast very heavy rain for three days from August 16 to 18, Garg told reporters.
She said fresh flooding had affected 5.15 lakh people in 947 villages under 331 gram panchayats across 49 blocks and five urban areas.
The state has so far evacuated 2.37 lakh people and sheltered them in 293 relief camps, she said.
Additional chief engineers of the Water Resources Department have been deployed to monitor embankments and carry out immediate repairs in case of breaches, Garg said.
Around 90 rescue teams, including 36 ODRAF, seven NDRF and 47 Fire Services teams, have been deployed in vulnerable areas, she said.
Teams from the health, water resources, housing and urban development, and fisheries and animal resources departments have also been deployed in the affected areas.
Additional Chief Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, Usha Padhee, directed all urban authorities to remain on high alert and ensure a prompt and coordinated response to any emerging situation.
In view of the weather warning, district administrations in Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar and Balasore have ordered the closure of schools and other educational institutions Monday.
The decision came amid reports that around 400 students of a government-run residential school in Kendrapara district were stranded at their hostel after floodwater from the Brahmani river inundated the area.
Utkal University has also postponed the fourth-semester examinations for UG (+3), BSc ITM, BSc Computer Science and B.Ed (UDTE) courses scheduled for August 17, citing the flood situation and disruption to transportation.
The revised examination schedule will be notified separately, according to a university notification.
Meanwhile, the IMD has issued a red warning for several parts of the state and advised fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off the West Bengal and adjoining Bangladesh, Odisha and north Andhra Pradesh coasts from August 16 to 18.
In its latest bulletin, the weather office said the low-pressure area over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining West Bengal-north Odisha coasts had become a well-marked low-pressure area over the same region at 5.30 pm Sunday.
It is very likely to move northwestwards and concentrate into a depression during the next 12 hours, the IMD said.
According to sources in the office of the Special Relief Commissioner, the flood situation remained grim in Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar districts.
The districts have been affected by flooding in the Baitarani, Brahmani, Salandi, Jalaka and Budhabalanga rivers and their tributaries.
The water level in the Subarnarekha, which had been rising, receded Sunday morning and was flowing below its danger level of 10.36 metres at Rajghat in Jaleswar, officials said.
Though water levels in some rivers have started receding, authorities are keeping a close watch on the situation following the formation of the fresh low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal.