Crop losses being assessed by officials

By Our Staff Reporter

KHAMMAM, AUG. 23. With the flood level receding, the district administration on Thursday engaged revenue and agriculture officials in the assessment of losses. The District Collector, Mr. A. Giridhar, who has visited some of the flood ravaged areas in Bhadrachalam division and Palvancha division, said a report would be sent to the Government on the crop losses.

The flood level in the Godavari dropped to 43.3 feet at Bhadrachalam by 3 p.m and it is likely to come down further as the CWC base stations upstream have been showing the receding trend. The relief camps would be continued for a day or two in places wherever the need is felt. People have started leaving relief camps set up in 47 places since this morning so as to resume their daily routine.

In all, 674 families were shifted from 30 habitations, which were either partly affected with the flood flow touching 53.8 feet by 1 p.m. on Wednesday. Movement of the vehicular traffic from Bhadrachalam to Chintoor, Vararamachandrapuram, Kunavaram, Wajeedu, Charla and Venkatapuram mandals and some villages Velerpadu and Kukkunoor mandals was affected.

People bound for Vararamachandrapuram and other river bank villages who were stranded at Bhadrachalam were sent to their respective places by engaging launches. Mandal officials were entrusted with the task of rice distribution to the families affected by flood.

People in the low lying localities- such as Shilpinagar and the temple town - were also affected as the flood water entered after the issue of third warning. The affected people took shelter in Tanisha Kalyanamantapam and the temple satrams where relief camps were opened subsequently. The flood bank in construction to protect the temple town is yet to be completed.

Crops such as cotton, redgram, jowar and paddy, which covered the flood-prone villages in Bhadrachalam, Chintoor, Dummugudem, Kunavaram and Vararamachandrapuram mandals were under a sheet of water for about a day.

Agriculture officials will ascertain whether the crops will revive or not. In Burgumpdau mandal alone standing crops in about 500 hectares were inundated. The farmers who had completed paddy transplantation in Nagineniprolu, Iravendi, Ganapavaram and Ibrahimpet villages have borne the brunt.

The Minister for Prohibition and Excise, Mr. Tummala Nageswara Rao, have joined the officials in stocktaking in the affected areas. He visited the flood bank as well as the residential localities inundated in the temple town.

He enquired about the impact of the flood on road communications, and said that the Government was ready to raise the road levels so as to ensure free movement of vehicular traffic even in the flood time.

The roads were cut off at 23 points in Bhadrachalam division on account of floods.

According to a report from Rajahmundry, officials and people, specially in the vulnerable mandals like Sakhinetipalli, Malikipuram, Mamidikuduru, all in the Konaseema area, and the villages in Devipatnam mandal in the agency area heaved a sigh of relief as the water level of the Godavari started receding.

After rising rapidly, the water level at Dowleswaram Barrage stood stable at 16.25 ft.-the highest this season- with a water discharge of 17.10 lakh cusecs by 12 noon today and then started receding. It came down to 15.90 ft by 5 pm. The water discharge is 16.70 lakh cusecs.

The danger signal would be hoisted when the water level crossed the 17.75 ft. mark at the Barrage. All the gates at the Barrage had been opened.

According to the Barrage officials, the water level would come down further.

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Section  : Southern States
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