The Odisha government is coordinating with the Union Home Ministry to airlift people stranded in Ganjam district, where heavy rain and flash floods triggered by Cyclone Arnab have marooned around 300 villages, Chief Secretary Anu Garg said on Thursday, reported PTI.
Tthe state has deployed 54 teams from various disaster response agencies for rescue operations as washed-out highways and disrupted train services hamper connectivity. However, low cloud cover and continued rainfall could delay air evacuations, Garg said.
According to PTI, the rescue teams comprise three units of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 27 of the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) and 24 Fire Service teams.
The state government plans to airlift 120 people in the first phase, Garg said, adding that the Indian Coast Guard would provide a helicopter and make the necessary arrangements.
“The state government is in contact with the Ministry of Home Affairs, and arrangements are being made to airlift some people from the marooned areas. The Indian Coast Guard will provide a chopper and make required arrangements,” she said, as quoted by PTI.
“We are optimistic that rains will ease, allowing our rescue teams to reach the affected people. We have rushed an additional ODRAF team to Ganjam and a senior officer has been monitoring the evacuation activities,” Garg said.
Sorada is among the worst-affected areas of Ganjam district, with the Rushikulya river overflowing after extremely heavy rainfall over the past three days, inundating nearby towns and villages. In Aska, the river is flowing close to its danger level, officials said, PTI reported.
Digapahandi and Chikiti blocks have also witnessed incessant rainfall over the past two days, triggering floods.
Garg said the rainfall recorded in Ganjam and Gajapati districts over the past few days was comparable to what the region sometimes receives over an entire year.
Patrapur in Ganjam recorded 546 mm of rain till Thursday morning, while G Udayagiri in Kandhamal received 462.4 mm, Sanakhemundi 388 mm, Raikia 384.8 mm and Sorada 375 mm, according to the State Relief Commissioner's office.
Chikiti in Ganjam received 309.2 mm of rain, while Mohana in Gajapati recorded 307.6 mm. Daringbadi and Chakapad in Kandhamal received 273 mm and 249 mm, respectively.
“Rivers are flowing in spate, making it difficult to operate boats there. As many as 42,500 in Ganjam and around 20,000 in Gajapati have been affected,” Garg said.
Odisha Transport Minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena said most of the marooned people were in villages in Sanakhemundi and Aska blocks.
The state's Engineer-in-Chief, Dilip Kumar Rout, said the extremely heavy rainfall had triggered a flood-like situation in Ganjam. The Rushikulya river was flowing at 19 metres at Purushottampur, against its danger level of 16.8 metres.
“The water level is expected to rise further,” he said.
The downpour also triggered landslides in Ganjam, Gajapati and Kandhamal districts.
Rail services were disrupted in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh's Srikakulam district after a railway bridge was submerged, halting train movement on both sides, Garg said. Authorities were planning to evacuate stranded passengers by road. If that proved impossible, the passengers would be accommodated at nearby railway stations, where necessary facilities were being arranged, she said.
Around 300 metres of National Highway 326 has been washed away in Mohana block of Gajapati district, disrupting connectivity with Ganjam. The Gajapati district administration has extended the closure of schools until October 31 due to waterlogging and continued rainfall, an official said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has assured Odisha and other affected states of all possible assistance in dealing with the impact of Cyclone Arnab.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said he had spoken to Shah and briefed him on the cyclone's impact, the situation in affected districts and the relief and restoration measures being undertaken by the state government.
“He assured us of all possible assistance to Odisha in the wake of the cyclone. The support and cooperation of the Government of India will further strengthen our efforts to protect lives, support affected families and expedite relief, rehabilitation and restoration across the state,” Majhi said in a post on X.
(With inputs from PTI)
