Normal life badly hit due to extreme rains in Adilabad

Adilabad: Heavy rains pouring down continuously in erstwhile Adilabad district for the second day hitting normal life, on Sunday. Streams were flooded isolating many villages, wreaking havoc to farmers.

Nirmal district, which was hit on Saturday, registered an average rainfall of 137 mm on Sunday up to 8.30 am. Tanur received the highest rainfall of 218 mm. Mudhole and Bhainsa recorded 212 and 205 mm of rainfall, respectively. Kubheer, Basar, Kuntala, Naspur (G), Sarangapur, Nirmal Urban, Soan, Nirmal Rural, Laxmanachanda, Khanapur, Mamada, Pembi, Kaddam and Dilwarpur mandals saw somewhere between 100 and 160 mm of rainfall.

Due to the incessant rains, roads were battered in Bhainsa, Basar, Thanur, Mudhole and Lokeshwaram mandals parts of Nirmal district. Trees were uprooted in certain parts, disrupting transportation system. An irrigation tank was breached at Kishanraopet village in Mamanda mandal. Low-lying areas of Nirmal district headquarters were inundated. Rainwater entered houses in Shashtrinagar, Mancherial Chowrasta, Natarajnagar, Budhavarpet, Harijanawada, Doctors Lane and other parts causing inconvenience to the dwellers.

Forest Minister Allola Indrakaran Reddy toured flood-affected areas in Nirmal district centre and assured all support to the victims. Collector Musharraf Ali Faruqui said that officials concerned were alerted and asked to discharge duties in the field. He said that revenue officials would assess the damage caused by the rains. He requested the people living in low-lying areas in the district to be cautious. He advised the people to contact toll free number 1-800-425-5566 to report their problems.

Irrigation projects recieved copious inflows due to torrential rains in upstream areas. Kaddam Narayana Reddy, Swarna Gaddennavagu, and minor projects saw inflows. Kaddam project had 53,070 cusecs of inflows, while Swarna project registered inflows by 10,000 cusecs. Surplus water was released by lifting flood gates. People living in downstream were alerted. Cotton and paddy crops were damaged owing to the continuous rains. Farmers requested the government to assess crop damage by carrying out surveys and extend compensation.

Meanwhile, flooding streams isolated many villages in Kumram Bheem Asifabad district and Adilabad districts. A stream situated between Dimda and Keethini villages in Chintalamanepalli mandal, another between Lodapalli and Penchikalpet mandal centre, Asifabad mandal headquarters and Gondi village were overflown, disconnecting these villages and surrounding habitations from the rest of the world. Interior tribal habitations in Kerameri, Asifabad, Tiryani, Sirpur (U), Jainoor, Wankidi and Lingapur mandals bore the brunt of the rains with hilly streams submerging roads and hitting connectivity to their villages.

Similarly, Nirmal Collector Musharraf Ali Faruqui on Saturday visited the flood-affected areas in the district.

The Collector toured Bhainsa town which was affected by heavy downpours. He said that surplus water was released from both Gaddennavagu and Swarna project. He informed that rainwater reached roads causing inconvenience to motorists in Bhainsa, Basar and Thanur mandals. He also informed that six persons who were stranded in a function were safe and they would be brought out at the earliest.

The Collector said that officials concerned were alerted and asked to discharge duties in the field. He also said that revenue officials would assess the damage caused by the rains. He requested the people living in low-lying areas in the district to be cautious. He stated that the district was likely to see heavy rains for three days.