Krishna, Godavari rivers receiving heavy floodwater inflows in Andhra

Amaravati, Aug 19 (PTI) Krishna and Godavari rivers, along with several other irrigation projects in Andhra Pradesh are receiving heavy floodwater inflows due to downpours across many places in the state, said an official on Tuesday.

Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) managing director Prakhar Jain said the first warning has been issued at Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada, which clocked an inflow and outflow of 4 lakh cusecs of floodwaters.

"Floodwaters are gushing through Krishna and Godavari rivers. The first warning has been issued at Prakasam Barrage where 4.01 lakh cusecs of floodwater inflows and outflows were logged," said Jain in an official release.

APSDMA special chief secretary G Jayalakshmi held a teleconference with the collectors of 13 districts as Krishna and Godavari rivers are in spate.

"Ensure that no untoward incidents occur. Alert people living in low-lying areas regularly and if needed, shift them to an evacuation centre. Keep NDRF and SDRF teams ready," she told the collectors.

She instructed officials to keep basic essentials, medicines and sanitation materials ready.

Heavy rains across several places in the state owing to a depression are contributing to floodwater inflows across all the rivers and waterbodies.

Earlier, Jain said up to five lakh cusecs of floodwater inflows are expected to reach Prakasam Barrage at Vijayawada.

The APSDMA managing director said Srisailam Dam witnessed an inflow of 3.4 lakh cusecs of floodwaters and over 4 lakh cusecs of outflows.

At Nagarjunasagar project, inflows amounted to 3.7 lakh cusecs and outflows 3.9 lakh cusecs while Pulichintala project witnessed inflows of 4.3 lakh cusecs and outflows of 4.3 lakh cusecs, he said.

At Bhadrachalam in Telangana, Jain said the Godavari river water level reached a height of 36.6 ft while it was 36.6 ft at Dowleswaram in East Godavari district.

According to Jain, the depression over Bay of Bengal and North Andhra crossed near Gopalpur in South Odisha on Tuesday today. Under its influence, he said, there will be moderate to heavy rains at some places in the North Andhra region.

He advised fishermen against venturing into the sea and alerted people to stay cautious.

According to APSDMA, Maredumilli in Alluri Sitarama Raju district registered the highest rainfall of 115.2 mm till 8.30 am on Tuesday.

Other places which recorded high rainfall include Meliaputti (89.6 mm), Kotabommali (84.8 mm) and Pathapatnam (83.2 mm) in Srikakulam district, among others. PTI STH KH