Swollen Yeleru reservoir submerges 62,000 acres of agricultural fields in Andhra

Kakinada: As many as 62,000 acres of agricultural fields were submerged in Kakinada district due to flood water inflows into Yeleru and Thandava reservoirs, said an official on Wednesday.

Kakinada district Collector S Shan Mohan apprised Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan over Yeleru reservoir, which is in spate due to heavy rains in the catchment areas. "Flood waters entered onto the roads in Pithapuram and Peddapuram constituencies due to breaches and vehicular traffic has been stalled," Shan Mohan told the Deputy CM.

Vehicular traffic was affected between Pithapuram and Raparthi, Peddapuram and Gudivada and Samarlakota and Pithapuram.

In view of heavy flood water flow on the national highway near Gollaprolu, vehicular traffic was diverted, said the Collector, adding that boats and flood relief measures have been put in place in the affected regions.

On Monday, Pawan Kalyan visited the Pithapuram Assembly constituency to inspect the flood along the Yeleru reservoir’s catchment and command area in the Kakinada district.

According to the Andhra Pradesh Water Resources Information & Management System (APWRIMS), 108 reservoirs in the state are filled up to 78 per cent capacity, storing 773 TMC water, while Yeleru reservoir is filled over 90 per cent of its capacity at 22 TMC.

However, the Collector noted that inflows are reducing gradually.

Meanwhile, East Godavari district Collector P Prasanthi said the second level warning has been issued at Dowleswaram Barrage and 13 lakh cusecs of flood water are being discharged.

Considering the swollen nature of the Godavari river, she appealed to the riparian inhabitants to be careful and avoid entering into the waters for bathing or Vinayaka Chavithi festivities. She advised people to postpone idol immersions by 48 hours, among other precautions.

Central team arrives to assess flood damage:

On Wednesday, a Central government team arrived to Vijayawada to assess the flood damage in Andhra Pradesh due to the recent torrential downpours and deluge, affecting as many as seven districts.

Local officials have prepared the preliminary report on the flood devastation and also readied a route map for the Central team's tour.

"Officials (local) are explaining the flood situation and the damage it caused to the Central team at the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) office in Tadepalli," said an official.

The Central team is meeting with officials from various departments to learn about the havoc wreaked by the deluge, which affected West Godavari, Eluru, Krishna, NTR, Guntur, Bapatla and Palnadu districts.

The team was apprised of the devastation caused by the Budameru rivulet in Vijayawada, besides the various relief activities undertaken by the state government.