BHAWANIPATNA: WITH flood water in Hati, Nagavali and Bansadhara rivers receding since Thursday morning, the extent of damage to roads, bridges and crops in Kalahandi district has come to fore. Assessment of damage to public and private properties is underway.
As many as 483 villages in Lanjigarh block have been affected and 415 houses damaged in the torrential rains. Similarly, 167 villages were affected and 375 houses damaged in Thuamul Rampur block and in Junagarh, 179 villages were waterlogged following the floods. Villages under Kalampur and Dharamgarh blocks were also affected by the floods.
Crops in Sahajkana, Talmala, and Masigaon villages located near the confluence of Hati and Tel rivers, are also submerged. In the last 24 hours, Thuamul Rampur received the highest rainfall of 312 mm followed by 309 mm in Karlamunda block.
The Vedanta refinery, located in the foothills of Niyamgiri, also had to bear the brunt of incessant rain. Water gushed down from the hills and flooded the staff colony on the plant premises on Wednesday. A portion of the wall collapsed and three feet water flowed over the Lanjigarh- Muniguda road in front of the main gate of the refinery. Chief Operating Officer of Vedanta Refinery, Rakesh Mohan said there was no damage to any part of the plant or the refinery.