On Monday, Odisha’s Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi embarked on a boat journey to reach submerged villages in Jajpur district, as the flood situation in the state remains dire, affecting more than 7.85 lakh individuals, according to officials.
Joined by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari, Sports Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, and BJP state president Manmohan Samal, Majhi visited the most severely impacted areas, including Kasapa and Tarapada gram panchayats in the Dasarathpur block. This visit came as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted additional rainfall due to a low-pressure system in the Bay of Bengal that has intensified into a depression.
Wearing a life jacket, the chief minister traveled by motorboat to engage with residents in Ramchandrapur, Balda, and Dhobabil villages. Standing in knee-deep water, he listened to their concerns and assured them that the government prioritizes their safety and support.
Majhi also evaluated the quality of meals provided at relief camps, emphasizing that permanent flood-control solutions would be implemented to mitigate future flooding in northern Odisha. Following this, he visited additional flood-affected villages in Bhadrak district.
However, the visit ignited a political dispute as BJD MLAs, including opposition chief whip Pramila Mallik, staged a protest, claiming they were barred from joining the chief minister during his boat survey. Mallik accused the government of allowing only BJP representatives to accompany Majhi.
As for the flood situation, Water Resources Department engineer-in-chief Dilip Kumar Rout indicated that conditions may persist for another four to five days, with water levels in the Brahmani and Baitarani rivers remaining elevated due to heavy rainfall linked to the depression. He noted that it could take four days for floodwaters to recede in Jajpur and Bhadrak districts, where two embankment breaches are currently being repaired.
Officials reported that over 2.77 lakh individuals have been evacuated and are being housed in nearly 531 relief camps, including makeshift shelters on river embankments and in schools. A total of 126 villages across Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, and Kendrapara districts remain submerged.
In response to the adverse weather, the state government has canceled employee leave, and schools and other educational institutions were closed on Monday. The IMD confirmed that a well-marked low-pressure area over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjacent coasts has intensified into a depression.
The system has been moving slowly north-northwest at 6 km/h over the past six hours, currently located about 30 km west-northwest of Kolkata. It is expected to continue moving northwest towards Jharkhand through Gangetic West Bengal over the next 24 hours.
The IMD issued a red alert for extremely heavy rainfall in Balasore, Keonjhar, and Mayurbhanj districts, along with an orange alert for Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Sundergarh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Angul, and Dhenkanal.
Fishermen have been cautioned against venturing into the sea in the North Bay of Bengal and along the coasts of West Bengal, Bangladesh, Odisha, and northern Andhra Pradesh until August 18, as the sea conditions are expected to be rough due to the depression.
A yellow warning for heavy rains has been issued for the districts of Bargarh, Subarnapur, Boudh, Puri, Khordha, and Nayagarh.
Chief Secretary Anu Garg stated that around 100 rescue teams have been deployed to vulnerable areas in northern Odisha, with senior engineers from the Water Resources Department dispatched to ensure embankment safety and minimize the disaster’s impact.
Additionally, three senior officials have been sent to monitor relief and rescue operations in the affected regions of Bhadrak, Jajpur, and Balasore.
In the past 24 hours, many regions in the state have experienced heavy to very heavy rainfall due to the low-pressure system, with Balasore town recording 93.1 mm of rain by 5:30 am on Monday, according to officials.
