Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Pradeep Kumar Jena on Wednesday said the next 24 hours would be crucial for the State which is now witnessing floods due to heavy flow of water in the Mahanadi and other rivers.
While 4.5 lakh people are affected by the floods, the situation may continue for the next four days, he added.
“Two breaches in the embankments of Mahanadi river system were reported on Tuesday. Another two breaches were reported today. For the first time since 2011, the State is witnessing floods in several districts simultaneously,” Jena said.
However, he said the floodwater flow in the Mahanadi through the Mundali barrage near Cuttack has gone down by 17,000 cusecs by Wednesday morning. It is expected that around 9 to10 lakh cusecs of water would pass through Mundali on Thursday.
The SRC said Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Cuttack, Khordha, Jajpur and Kendrapada districts have been affected by the floods.
“The State Government has deputed additional teams of the NDRF, the ODRAF and Fire Services personnel to the affected districts. The Collectors of Keonjhar, Bhadrak and Jajpur have been asked to remain on high alert as the Brahmani and Baitarani river basins are expected to receive rains in the next few hours,” Jena said.
The SRC also said the Government has asked the Health Department to store adequate numbers of anti-venom kits in the affected areas.
Water Resources Engineer-in-Chief Bijay Mishra said that at present, excess water from the Hirakud Dam is being released through 40 gates. The current water level at the dam is 626.47 feet while the dam’s storage capacity is 630 feet. While the inflow of water is 6.24 lakh cusecs, the outflow is 6.81 lakh cusecs.
“The decision regarding opening or closing of more gates of the dam will be taken as per the flood situation,” said he.
Revenue Minister Pramila Mallick said the Government has asked the administrations of the flood-affected districts to shift people from vulnerable areas to safer places.
“As per an assessment, we are now facing a medium-level flood. We have taken steps to provide cooked food to the affected people. Steps are being taken to fix breaches in the river embankments,” she added.