Rising Godavari menaces villages below Dowleswaram
ELURU: A flood threat loomed over villages along the banks of the river Godavari on Tuesday due to heavy rains upstream in Telangana. The river is witnessing heavy inflows in Andhra Pradesh too, and officials are releasing water at the Dowleswaram barrage at the rate of 13 lakh cusecs. This might ease the flood threat to tribal mandals in West Godavari district and parts of East Godavari district, the threat of inundation is live downstream of Dowleswaram.
The Godavari has been rising at the Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage at Dowleswaram. As the water level reached the 13.75 feet mark, the authorities have hoisted the second warning signal and released 13 lakh cusecs of water into the sea. All the 175 gates of the barrage have been lifted. The canals are also flowing full as the flood water is being released into them.
People residing in low-lying areas including lanka villages in the newly merged mandals of Chintoor, Kunavaram, VR Puram and Etapaka are in fear of floods. As many as 40 villages in Devipatnam mandal in the agency area, have been cut off from the mandal headquarters of Devipatnam after the road network was disrupted.
Flood waters have surged into the villages of Kondamodalu, Kachhuluru, Ghanturu, Devipatnam, Pudipalli. Kunavaram tashildar K Narsimhulu said motor launches have been kept ready to shift people from low-lying areas if necessary. The road has been damaged between Kunavaram and Bhadrachalam.
Etapaka tashildar G C Babu said a culvert at Nandigama collapsed and traffic has stopped on the road. The Nandigama and Murugav road too is submerged in flood water and government machinery has been geared up to meet the challenge. In Rampachodavaram, the Sitapallivagu is overflowing and traffic has come to a halt at Dandangi village. Officials shifted people residing in Bridgelanka, Picchukalanka, Kethavarilanka to Rajamahendravaram as the lankas have been marooned.
Meanwhile, East Godavari collector H Arun Kumar directed revenue divisional officers to shift people from low lying areas, mainly downstream of the barrage in Konaseema. Control rooms have been set up arranged at the collectorate, divisional and mandal offices.
Flood waters have ravaged villages in West Godavari district, cutting off connectivity to 44 villages in Velairpadu mandal on Tuesday. Around 19 mandals in Polavaram are unreachable. In Velairpadu mandal, the roads between Koida and Velairpadu as well as Rudramakota and Velairpadu are submerged. Floodwaters entered into the Goshpada Revu ghat in Kovvuru town this morning. All the bathing ghats in Kovvuru have been inundated. At Polavaram, flood water entered into Kademma sluice canal near Polavaram village. Officials have alerted flood duty officers to take necessary steps.
According to flood conservator N Krishna Rao, the water level is likely to remain high till Wednesday morning and is expected to decrease later. The water levels at Bhadrachalam and Kaleswaram are stable. The authorities are constantly monitoring the flood situation in the river, he said.