Baripada: A dream project for people of Baripada town and its outskirts in Mayurbhanj district is going to be realized. Local residents have been facing the flood fury from Budhabalanga river every year.
A ring road project along with a spur and automated sluice gates will be built to control floods in the town. Meanwhile, the irrigation department has initiated a survey for the project.
During Phailin, Baripada town was massively flooded. All streets were under water for days together. Floodwater even entered the district headquarters hospital and remained stagnant as high as 10 ft.
Patients had a harrowing time. The flood had inflicted huge damage on properties. Floodwater breaks the economic backbone of denizens every year. To mitigate the annual flood fury, they have been demanding construction of a ring road and a spur.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, while visiting Baripada to address a rally in 2019, had announced setting up of a ring road.
Days after the announcement, a technical advisory committee in its 117th meeting decided to construct a spur from Damodarpur to Sunamuhin ghat in three phases.
The committee had recommended an estimated Rs 62.34 crore for the project in the initial phase. The irrigation department has started a survey for the spur and the sluice gate eight years after Phailin, locals said.
Sources said, a report has been prepared for construction of eight sluice gates at the confluence of Budhabalanga, Sarali, Jarali, Sukajodi rivers.
The ring road will be 7-km long which will protect thousands of people of the town from flood fury. People of low-lying areas have blamed apathy of the administration for delay in the project.
PNN