Incessant rains lash Chittoor district; normal life hit

Tirupati: The incessant rains lashing Chittoor district since last night disrupted normal life more so in rural areas in the district.

The rains which started pouring last night due to the influence of low-depression in Bay of Bengal continued in most areas in the district particularly in the mandals in Tirupati divisions till afternoon of the Monday while MET department predicted more rains to continue.

Heavy rains in Tirupati area including Tirumala hills saw all the waterfalls in spate including Kapilatheertham, Malavanigundam, Papavinasam, Akasaganga, Kumaradharam-Pasupudhara while heavy inflows reported in all the dams on the hills.

Due to the unabated rains, causeways are overflowing in the eastern parts of district while the rivers and streams are in full flow in many mandals.

Following the alert from Tirupati Urban SP Ch Venkata Appala Naidu, police officers moved into the vulnerable areas to caution people to be wary of heavy rains and also to monitor the ground situation in the rain-hit villages. The SP directed the police to take up required safety measures in coordination with the municipal and Panchayat staff in the areas experiencing heavy rains.

Accordingly, the police officers in the mandals including Yerpedu, Srikalahasthi, Buchinaidu Kandriga, Varadaiahpalem, Satyavedu and other places inspected the vulnerable areas alerting the people.

Police and revenue officials shifted the tribal families in BGR ST Colony in Varadaiahpalem mandal to Govardhana Puram School and the five tribal families in the ST Colony in Srikalahasthi town to a

nearby school. Venkata Krishnaiah,45, died after his hut collapsed in the heavy rains in Gudalavairpalem in Varadaiahpalem mandal. In the same mandal,

transport facility was cut off for 8 villages following the overflowing of Aruna river in the mandal which is flowing above the danger mark on the road linking the villages. Official reports said one gate of Araniar project, the only one medium irrigation project in the district, was lifted following heavy inflows due to continuous rains in the catchment areas while

irrigation authorities closely monitoring the water levels in other medium irrigation projects including Kalangi, Krishnapuram reservoir as they were receiving heavy inflows following the rains.

The authorities also temporarily closed Srikalahasthi-Pichatur road for traffic keeping in view the heavy rains in the mandals through which the road is passing.

According to official sources, Varadaiahpalem reported the highest rainfall of 15 cm in the last 24 hours while 12 mandals in Tirupati division including Tirupati rural and urban recorded 5 to 10 cm rainfall.