Balasore/Mayurbhanj/Jajpur: The flood situation in several northern districts was alarming Monday, as the swollen Subarnekha river inundated low-lying areas and left people in over 100 villages marooned, officials said. The water level in all the rivers located in north Odisha is in spate due to heavy rain caused by a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal, and subsequent flood-water release from Jharkhand, they said. Authorities in Balasore and Mayurbhanj districts had Sunday launched a massive evacuation drive to shift people from vulnerable areas to safer locations, which is continuing Monday, they said.
Subarnarekha has been rising significantly since Sunday evening, inundating many areas in Baliapal, Bhograi, Basta and Jaleswar in Balasore by 11 am, the officials said. The Saraskana and Rasgovindpur blocks in Mayurbhanj districts have also been submerged. The authorities expect peak flooding to take place after more water is released from the Galudih barrage in Jharkhand. As per data of the Central Water Commission (CWC), the water level of Subarnarekha at Rajghat in the district was 11.90 metre at 9 am as against the danger level of 10.36 metre, while at Jamsolaghat it was 50.04 metre as against the danger level of 49.15 metre.
Apart from the Subarnarekha river, Balasore district is also affected by the flood waters of river Budhabalang and Jalaka, they said. In Jajpur district, the Baitarani river inundated a number of blocks, including Dasrathpur and Korei, while in Keonjhar, several places in Hatadihi, Ghasipura and Anandapur are under water.
Odisha Water Resources Minister Tukuni Sahu, after reviewing the flood situation, said, “Though the Subarnarekha river is still flowing above the danger mark, the water level has remained stable for the last eight hours. We are keeping a close watch on it.” She asserted that the authorities are fully prepared to deal with any eventuality. “Nearly 156 villages in 83 gram panchayats in Balasore district have been hit by the flood. The administration has evacuated 40,000 people by Monday noon, and they are housed in 227 temporary shelters. The process is still underway,” Balasore District Collector Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde said.
On Sunday, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik delegated the powers of a special relief commissioner to the collector of Balasore district so that the local administration could be more effective. A helicopter was also placed at his disposal to deal with any emergency. An IMD bulletin has forecast heavy rain in northern Odisha districts Tuesday. Odisha is already reeling under the impact of moderate flood in the Mahanadi river system, following incessant rainfall, which has affected over eight lakh people. Nearly five lakh are still marooned in 763 villages, according to government estimates.