Heavy rain triggers flash floods in Odisha; State on alert

Bhubaneswar, June 24: Torrential rains triggered flash floods in Odisha's southwest districts of Kalahandi and Nabrangpur, submerging low-lying areas, a minister said on Monday.

Nearly 15,000 people in about a dozen villages have been affected with some places recording as high as 400 mm of rain on Sunday, the state's Revenue and Disaster Management Department Minister Surya Narayan Patro told IANS.

Flood waters entered many homes. Road connectivity has been disrupted. Though the extent of damage has not yet been assessed, local authorities have been directed to provide relief, Patro said.

With the weatherman predicting more rain in the southern and northern belts and widespread rain in other parts of the state over the next two days, the government has asked all districts collectors to remain alert, he said.

In Uttarakhanad, the rescue operation is still on. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna today said the remaining stranded people--numbering about 10,000--in the flood-ravaged state are safe and that the mammoth multi-agency evacuation process will be completed in two to three days.

IANS