Bhubaneswar: Odisha is grappling with widespread flooding triggered by incessant heavy rainfall from a deep depression, prompting authorities to evacuate more than 70,000 people from low-lying areas and house them in 395 relief camps across the state.
Flash floods and waterlogging have been reported from 13 districts, including Baleshwar, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Mayurbhanj, Kalahandi, Koraput, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Kendujhar, Nayagarh, Kandhamala, Bolangir and Jagatsinghpur.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi is scheduled to conduct an aerial survey of the rain- and flood-affected regions in south Odisha on Sunday morning, focusing on areas in Ganjam, Koraput and Nabarangpur districts. He will be accompanied by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari and Special Relief Commissioner Rajesh Prabhakar Patil. The survey aims to assess infrastructure damage, crop losses and inundated residential areas to accelerate disaster relief and emergency response efforts.
The Chief Minister is expected to review the situation at Kotpad in Koraput and hold discussions with senior officials before inspecting affected parts of Nabarangpur.
Major rivers cross danger marks
Baleshwar has emerged as one of the worst-hit districts, with three major rivers flowing above danger levels. The situation aggravated on Saturday after Jharkhand opened 13 spillway gates of the Galudih barrage, releasing 5,513 cubic metres per second into the Subarnarekha.
The Subarnarekha, experiencing its fourth flood of the season in some stretches, was recorded at 11.68 metres at Rajghat in Jaleswar against a danger mark of 10.36 metres, submerging villages in Bhograi, Jaleswar, Baliapal and Basta blocks. The Jalaka River was flowing at 6.64 metres at Mathani, crossing its danger level of 6.50 metres, and the Budhabalang above the danger mark at 8.8 metres over NH-16 at Govindpur. Other rivers including Kansabansa, Soa and Gangahar were also in spate. Floodwaters have entered homes, damaged stored paddy and household supplies, submerged roads under several feet of water and disrupted connectivity, forcing residents to rely on traditional country boats. Agricultural fields with recently transplanted paddy seedlings and thousands of hectares of vegetable crops have suffered extensive damage.
In Bhadrak, the situation has turned serious for what is reported as the seventh flood this season, with the Baitarani River flowing at levels well above its danger mark of 18.33 metres at Akhuapada and the Salandi River exceeding its danger level of 17 feet at Rajghat. Rising waters have affected Bhandaripokhari, Dhamnagar, Tihidi and Chandbali blocks, inundating multiple wards of the municipal area and several panchayats, leaving localities surrounded by water. A total of 1.15 lakh people in 177 villages have been impacted.
A 22-year-old woman drowned after being swept away by strong currents in floodwater at Padhani Bhoisahi village under Dhamnagar police limits. Her body was recovered hours after she went missing.
In Jajpur, the overflowing Kani River, a branch of the Baitarani, has inundated at least 12 panchayats in Dasarathapur and Binjharpur blocks, affecting over 67,144 people in 42 villages, amid reports of two breaches in its embankment.
Floodwaters of the Budhabalang have entered parts of Baripada municipality and several blocks in Mayurbhanj, while authorities at Similipal National Park temporarily closed the Devkund tourist destination due to rising streams and damaged access routes.
In southern districts, five panchayats in Kotpad block of Koraput were inundated with over 100 houses damaged, and 29 gram panchayats in Nabarangpur reported inundated agricultural fields of paddy, maize and vegetables along with waterlogged houses. Five gates of the Indravati Project on the Hati River in Kalahandi have been opened, discharging water and flooding several blocks.
Compounding the state’s challenges, heavy rainfall in the upper catchments of Chhattisgarh has dramatically increased inflows into the Mahanadi River system. Authorities have opened up to 24 sluice gates at the Hirakud Dam, where water levels are nearing the reservoir’s maximum capacity. This massive discharge is expected to push between 5 to 8 lakh cusecs of floodwater through Mundali near Kataka by Sunday evening, placing downstream riverine communities in Banki, Athagada, Jagatsinghpur, and Kendrapada on high alert.
Rescue and relief operations are in full swing, with 33 teams of the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force, three National Disaster Response Force teams and around 300 Fire Services personnel engaged across affected areas
While the Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar has downgraded immediate rainfall warnings as the current weather system weakens, officials remain vigilant and are closely tracking a fresh cyclonic circulation developing over the Andaman Sea.
The state government has reiterated its commitment to providing all necessary assistance and relief to those impacted by the floods.