Water from swelling Godavari inundates villages in Odisha's districts

Parts of Malkangiri district in Odisha are reeling under floods as backwaters from river Godavari in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh inundated villages and fields, prompting the administration to evacuate people from the low-lying areas.

The district administration has opened shelter camps at different places for the flood-affected people, Malkangiri Collector Vishal Singh said.

The district has received heavy showers in past four days. Backwaters from river Godavari has entered Motu block and some other places on the banks of its tributaries Sabari and Sileru, Singh told PTI.

Water level in river Godavari has touched 70 feet at Bhadrachalam, four feet more than the previous record set in 2006, the collector stated.

Singh, who visited Motu, Kalimela and Padia blocks of the district, said that the administration has made elaborate arrangement for the safety of people.

An official report said at least three villages -- Binayakpur, Alama and Peta -- have been completed inundated in the flood, with locals there wading through the waters to reach to safety.

There has been no human casualty in the flood thus far, Singh said.

Meanwhile, the IMD said in a bulletin said that a low pressure area that was hovering over north Odisha on Thursday now lay over the coastal part of the state.

The weatherman predicted light to moderate rain in most places across Odisha, with heavy to very heavy rain in some parts of the state.

Hemgiri in Sundergarh received 161 mm of rain over the past 24 hours till 8.30 am, followed by 127 mm at Deogaon in Jharsuguda. Downpour was witnessed in some areas of Keonjhar, Kandhamal and Deogarh districts.

The Met office also issued an orange alert of heavy to very heavy showers for Saturday at a few places in the districts of Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Boudh, Bolangir, Bargarh, Sambalpur and Angul. It may trigger landslides or mudslides in vulnerable areas, according to the weather office.

The IMD has given a yellow warning of heavy rainfall in Khurda, Puri and Cuttack districts on Saturday.

Heavy showers are also expected in parts of several districts, including Malkangiri, Nabarangpur and Sundargarh, over the next three days. Fisherfolk have been advised not to venture into the sea during the period.

The Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) has alerted district collectors and asked them to keep a constant vigil on the developments that may take place due to heavy rainfall in different parts of the state.