VIJAYAWADA: Removing the three boats, which have been stuck at gate 69 of the Prakasam Barrage on the River Krishna for over 10 days, is proving to be a challenging task for the Water Resources Department.
Officials told TNIE that they are adopting every method to remove the boats as soon as possible.
So far, officials have tried removing the boats with the help of cranes and by deploying experts in underwater cutting, but in vain. It has been learnt that the Water Resources Department has sought the services of Dharmadi Satyam, whose Kakinada-based firm Balaji Marines had successfully retrieved Royal Vashishta from the River Godavari near Kachchuluru in Devipatnam in 2019 after it had capsized.
He is expected to arrive in Vijayawada soon. The Department is also mulling over employing salvage rubber balloons to assist in retrieval of the boats.
On September 1, a total of five boats were washed away in the floodwater.
No definite time frame for retrieval of boats, experts from Kakinada to join op
One of them flowed through the vents of the barrage downstream, while another is suspected to have sunk. Three of the five boats, which were chained together, got stuck in the gates of the barrage.
Water Resources Minister Nimmala Rama Naidu, who inspected the progress of retrieving the boats on Thursday, admitted that cutting the iron boats underwater with the help of experts from Visakhapatnam proved to be tougher than expected as they are sturdy and weigh over 40 tonnes each.
Stating that the experts were able to cut 70% of one boat, the Minister added that the wreckage can be retrieved only after the boat is split into two. “We have also requested for the services of experts who retrieved the capsized boat in Godavari near Devipatnam in 2019,” he explained.
According to officials, efforts were made to lift the boats out of the water from Prakasam Barrage using giant cranes. It proved to be a futile attempt as the three boats were chained together, making it difficult to lift them from the water. The combine weight of the boats, which is over 120 tonnes, only added to the woes of the officials.
Initially, it was decided that the boats will be retrieved once the floodwater in the Prakasam Barrage decreases to 5 lakh cusecs. However, even with the flood discharge rate below 3 lakh cusecs, removing the boats has been challenging.
“We do not have a definite time frame as to when and how the boats will be retrieved. Now, experts in underwater cutting are trying their luck. Experts from Kakinada are also expected to arrive soon. Meanwhile, the Department is trying to drag the boats from the bank. Had the boats got stuck in the middle of the barrage, removing them would have been even more difficult,” a senior irrigation official told TNIE.
Course of action
Water Resources Dept have sought help of Dharmadi Satyam, whose firm had retrieved Royal Vashishta from Godavari after it had capsized in 2019