After three days of relentless rains, triggered by the low pressure in the Bay of Bengal, large areas of Jajpur district are now waterlogged and the major rivers and their tributaries are swelling.
Two weeks back, around 1.50 lakh villagers of Dasarathpur block had faced floods. Now, the flood-affected villagers are spending sleepless nights after the river Baitarani has crossed the danger mark in the district.
“At an emergency meeting on Monday, the district administration assessed the impact of the floods as very critical as gushing waters threaten to swallow more villages in vulnerable parts of Dasarathpur, Binjharpur, Bari, Badachana and Dharmasala blocks,” said district Collector Anil Kumar Samal.
Many riverside and low land areas are inundated and communication links have broken down. Flood-affected villagers have stopped rebuilding their damaged houses as they are threatened by another spell of floods soon. At Jajpur town, several low-lying areas are now under two feet of water
“All Government officials of the district have been directed by the administration not to leave their respective headquarters,” said the Collector.