Bhubaneswar: Copious rains across the state in the past 24 hours with rise in water level in all major reservoirs and dams have raised the hopes of the farming community. While the state government has allayed fears of floods at 20 vulnerable spots, hundreds of people have been evacuated to safety and three persons are reported to have died in rain-related incidents so far.
According to state governmernt sources, two persons died in wall collapse incidents in Kendrapara district and one person drowned in Khurda district.
At least nine districts — Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Khurda, Kendrapada, Cuttack, Nayagarh , Boudh, Jajpur and Sonepur — received an average rainfall of more than 100 mm in the past 24 hours. On the contrary, Astarang and Kakatpur in Puri district recorded a highest rainfall of 530 mm and 525 mm during the same period. Similarly, heavy rainfall was recorded in Jagatsinghpur (440mm), Kantapada (381mm) and Niali (370 mm) in Cuttack district, Gop (331mm), Nimapara (302) and Satyabadi (328) in Puri district.
Earlier, chief engineer of Water Resources Department, Dhiren Samal informed reporters that there was no threat of floods at vulnerable areas across the state as water level in various reservoirs including Hirakud and Rengali is below danger mark and the officials are geared up to monitor the rising water levels.
Water level in River Mahanadi at Naraj stood at 25.41-ft against a danger mark of 26.41-ft, River Devi flowed at a height of 10.8-ft at Alipingal against a danger mark of 11.7-ft, Kushabhadra flowed at 9.85-ft at Nimapada where the earmarked danger level is 10.7-ft. Similarly, rivers Ib at Sundargarh, Brahmani at Panposh and Jenapur flowed below danger mark.
Interestingly, none of the gates of Hirakud dam has been opened so far even as 1,32,897 cusec water was recorded entering the dam at 3 pm against an outflow of 22, 432 cusec.
