Flooding of colonies along Krishna to end

Vijayawada: The long-pending problem of inundation of colonies on the banks of the Krishna river and downstream of Prakasam barrage in Vijayawada is likely to be solved soon as Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy will lay the foundation stone for the construction of 1.5 km retaining wall on March 31.

The State Government has sanctioned Rs 125 crore for the retaining wall.

During monsoon every year, several thousand families living in Tarakaramanagar, Ranigarithota, Bhupesh Nagar colony, Koti Nagar, Balaji Nagar and other colonies suffer due to inundation of houses by flood waters of River Krishna. Over 2,500 families, mostly poor suffer due to the floods.

If the flood water crosses the 8-lakh cusecs mark, houses get inundated forcing the inmates to move to safer areas. The residents have been demanding the government for a long time for construction of retaining wall, said Krishna district collector Md Imtiaz.

Even last year, hundreds of families were badly affected due to floods. They were evacuated and given shelter at the IGMC stadium. He said over 520 families will be evacuated for construction of the retailing wall and the VMC has identified the houses for the displaced families.

During the 2009 floods, the flood water crossed 11 lakh cusecs, which is the highest ever recorded by the Irrigation department. Due to environmental factors and other reasons, sometimes the Krishna river is getting heavy floods.

Last year, the crest gates of Prakasam barrage were lifted for 120 days to release the flood water into the sea. In 2019 the crest gates were lifted for 80 days.

On the other hand, arrangements are underway for a ground-breaking ceremony near Kanaka Durgamma varadhi. The CM along with peoples representatives, officials and others will attend the ground-breaking ceremony on March 31.