Flood threat looms over T’gana, Andhra as Godavari swells
23 Jun 2015 6:11 AM IST
Dozens of villages in both the states were cut off in Khammam district of Telangana and East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh as Godavari river and its tributaries remained in <g data-gr-id="35">spate</g>.
The water level in Godavari at Bhadrachalam in Khammam district rose to 37 feet at 9 a.m. on Monday, inundating many villages along the banks. With heavy rains lashing the upstream Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh states and met department forecasting continued downpour, officials expect more inflows by the evening.
Many rivulets, reservoirs, streams and tanks in the district were overflowing as rains continued for a six consecutive day. Heavy downpour in upstream Chhattisgarh led to flood situation at Taliperu reservoir across Taliperu river, a tributary of Godavari river in Khammam district. Officials opened 22 gates of the project to let one lakh cusecs of water downstream.
Flash floods in Cheekupalli stream in the same district also inundated low-level causeway, cutting off road connectivity to surrounding villages.
Due to heavy inflows from upstream Khammam, Godavari river is in spate in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. As the water level at Dowleswaram barrage near Rajahmundry touched 7.7 feet, officials opened 175 gates to let 5.8 lakh cusecs of water into Bay of Bengal.
The downstream villages face flood threat. East Godavari district collector Arun Kumar appealed people to remain alert and cooperate with authorities. Swollen Godavari inundated villages in Konaseema region of East Godavari.
The situation has worried the farmers, who fear crop damage. Krishna river is also receiving heavy inflows due to incessant rains in parts of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. With the water level rising at Prakasam barrage in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, authorities opened 30 gates to release 21,000 cusecs of water.
Heavy rains accompanied by strong winds wrecked havoc in parts of Krishna district since Sunday night. Electricity poles were uprooted disrupting power supply in some areas.
Sowing gathers pace as monsoon delivers ample rainfall
Better-than-expected monsoon in the past two weeks have helped farmers in several parts of India sow cotton, pulses and oilseeds on time, but the country's weather office is still sticking to its forecast of a likely <g data-gr-id="91">drought</g>. Although a delayed arrival of the monsoon had worried farmers, more than two-thirds of the country has now received normal or above-normal levels of rainfall so far this monsoon season, which starts on June 1. Overall, rainfall was 16% above normal as of Monday, helping fill up some reservoirs in a country where over half the farmland lacks irrigation systems. "We were worried since everyone was talking about a drought," said Shivaji <g data-gr-id="92">Pophale</g>, busy planting cotton in his three-acre plot in the village of <g data-gr-id="93">Hivra</g> in central India.
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