Torrential rains continued to wreak havoc in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Monday, with flooding and waterlogging in several areas, disrupting people's lives. Twenty-six teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed for flood relief and rescue operations in two neighbouring states. Several rivers in both states are in spate due to continuous downpours, flooding low-lying areas. The national and state disaster response forces have evacuated thousands of people from flooded areas to relief camps.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Telangana CM A Revanth Reddy and assured them of all possible help from the central government to deal with rains and floods, according to a report by news agency PTI.
Due to flooding and waterlogging over tracks in several areas across both states, over 100 trains have been cancelled so far, while many others were diverted, the South Central Railway said.
Telangana
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for very heavy to extremely heavy rain at isolated places in Telangana's Adilabad, Nizamabad, Rajanna Sircilla, Yadadri Bhuvangiri, Vikarabad, Sangareddy, Kamareddy and Mahabubnagar districts till 8:30 am on Monday.
In view of more rains, the Hyderabad administration has ordered the closure of all schools and colleges in the flood-hit city on Monday. The traffic police have also urged IT companies to allow their employees to work from home following a red alert for extremely heavy in Hyderabad. Hyderabad District Collector Anudeep Durishetty has people living in low-lying areas on alert and ordered officials to shift them to relief camps.
Collectors in other districts have also been asked to declare a holiday for educational institutions as per local conditions on Monday. Telangana Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy said despite several precautionary measures, nine persons lost their lives in various parts of the state in separate rain-related incidents. Three persons were also feared washed away in Mahabubabad and Khammam districts.
In districts like Suryapet, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Mahbubabad and Khammam, authorities evacuated residents of several flood-hit villages to safety, he said.
Andhra Pradesh
Several places in Andhra Pradesh are also expected to receive rainfall, including heavy rainfall in some places. Parts of Srikakulam, Vijayanagaram, Parvatipuram Manyam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Kakinada and Nandyala districts are likely to receive heavy rainfall.
Alerting people living in low-lying areas, Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority managing director R Kurmandh said the first level warning has been issued at Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada as the Krishna river is in spate, following heavy inflow.
Andhra Pradesh has reported nine rain-related deaths and one missing case since Saturday. The state had reported eight deaths a day earlier. In the worst affected Vijayawada district, Budameru, a rivulet on the outskirts of the district, overflowed at several points on Sunday, leading to flooding in many city localities such as Ajit Singh Nagar, Swathi Theatre area, Police Nagar area and west and central constituencies. Many houses and vehicles were submerged in these areas and others.
Due to the heavy rain, Vijayawada and Guntur cities have been completely marooned. Vijayawada-Guntur national highway at Kaza and Vijayawada-Hyderabad national highway at Jaggaiahpeta were totally marooned, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said at a press conference at the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) in Tadepalli,
According to the CM, Jaggaiahpeta received 26 cm of rainfall in 24 hours while 14 mandals registered over 20 cm of rainfall. He said 94 more places in 14 districts received rainfall between 7 and 12 cm and added that nine rain-related deaths and one missing case were reported. Noting that up to 2 lakh cusecs of rainwater entered Budameru, he said the state is unable to estimate how much more water is expected to flow in.
IMD Forecast
Meanwhile, the depression over north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts, which has been causing heavy rainfall over the past two days, moved northwestwards to cross the southern state's coast near Kalingapatnam in the wee hours of Sunday, said an India Meteorological Department official. The weather system currently lay centred over south Odisha and adjoining north Andhra Pradesh, about 90 km north to northwest of Visakhapatnam and 120 km east of Malkangiri. It is likely to move west-northwestwards across south Odisha and south Chhattisgarh to weaken into a well-marked low-pressure area during the next 24 hours, the official said in a press release.