Heavy rain triggered by a deep depression has affected more than 73,000 people across 10 districts of Odisha, with over 40,000 people evacuated to safer locations, officials said on Saturday.
There has been no report of human or livestock casualties so far. Meanwhile, rising water levels in several rivers have raised fears of flooding in parts of the state. The Subarnarekha river was rising following heavy rain in its upper catchment, raising fears of flooding in the Basta, Baliapal, Bhograi and Jaleswar areas.
The affected areas include 80 blocks, 325 gram panchayats, 1,071 villages and 49 wards in 10 urban local bodies, according to the latest government assessment. Sixteen villages have remained waterlogged, while 721 houses were partially or fully damaged and 4,480 hectares of cropland were affected. Mayurbhanj was among the worst-affected districts, with 20,475 people affected in 144 villages across 20 blocks.
Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said southern Odisha had been particularly affected, with Koraput, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Rayagada, Ganjam and Gajapati districts witnessing widespread impact.
Pujari said heavy rain in the upper catchments of Chhattisgarh has increased water flow in the Mahanadi, while rainfall in Jharkhand is expected to affect parts of northern Odisha, including Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar.
