There is no flood situation in the Mahanadi and the water discharge at Mundali has reduced, informed Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Bishnupada Sethi on Tuesday.
“Currently, less than 4.5 lakh cusecs of water is being discharged. The water level in the Baitarani has also come down; so, there is no chance of flood,” he said.
“Rainfall in last 24 hours is negligible as many districts have recorded nil rainfall. In Munduli, the water level at its peak at 7.5 lakh cusecs has now come down to 4.5 lakh cusecs. Most of the districts which were earlier alerted for possible flood are now safe. Water level in the Baitarani has also receded from the danger level,” Sethi added.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik reviewed the flood situation in the districts under the Northern Division at Sambalpur and directed the concerned officials to estimate the losses and take measures for restoration of the damages within next 24 hours.
Patnaik said, “I just had a review about the rainfall in 10 districts of the Northern Division.
I have instructed the officers that wherever the damages have been done, it should be restored within 24 hours and to keep us updated in Bhubaneswar how the matter progresses.”
With the rise in water level following incessant rains in the upper catchment area of the Mahanadi, the Hirakud Dam released the season’s first floodwater on the day.
The dam opened three sluice gates at around 12 noon following a ceremonial Puja at the dam’s site in the presence of several district officials. The floodwater released by the dam will reach Mundali barrage in next 36 hours.
Sambalpur district Collector Samarth Verma said, “Currently, flood water is being released through three gates. The dam would open 15 more gates in a phased manner.”
While the dam has storage capacity of 630 feet, its water level stood at 618 feet by 10 am. Sources said 1,40,899 cusecs of water per second was now entering the dam while 12,121 cusecs water per second is being released from the reservoir.
The dam authorities said the water level is likely to further rise in view of more rains predicted by the weather office.