Heavy flow in Cauvery inundates many residential areas
Over one lakh cusecs of water flow down the Cauvery River, flooding residential neighbourhoods along its course.
Representative image
COIMBATORE: As the river Cauvery is in spate due to heavy discharge of water from Karnataka reservoirs, several low-lying areas along the banks of the Cauvery in Erode were inundated on Monday.
Over one lakh cusecs of water flow down the Cauvery River, flooding residential neighbourhoods along its course.
People residing in ‘Kandan Pattarai’, Cauvery Nagar, Keeraikara Street, and neighbouring areas in Bhavani were evacuated after water entered their locality. Around 30 houses in Kandan Pattarai got inundated.
Most of the families moved to Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenements in Mylambadi, while relief centres were kept ready to accommodate people from vulnerable areas.
Vehicle movement on the old bridge connecting Bhavani and Kumarapalayam in Namakkal continues to be suspended, forcing people to take a detour of around ten kilometres.
Police were maintaining a vigil at the new bridge in Bhavani, where a large number of villagers are turning up to watch the spectacle of gushing waters in the river.
Similarly, the revenue department authorities continue to caution the public living in Hogenkkal, Ranipet, Ootamalai, Chatram, Nadar Kottai and neighbouring vulnerable areas to move to safe areas.
Bathing has been banned, and coracle services continue to remain suspended in Hogenakkal due to heavy flooding. Also, boating services were stopped between Nerinjipettai in Erode and Poolampatti in Salem, while devotees were banned from bathing in Bhavani Kooduthurai and at Kodumudi Sangameswarar temple in Erode.
Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have been deployed in Erode to address emergencies. Some residential areas in Namakkal also come under sheets of water.
At Biligundlu, the entry point of the River Cauvery into Tamil Nadu from Karnataka, the water flow rose steadily from 1.05 lakh cusecs on Monday, 6 am, to 1.15 lakh cusecs at 11 am and further to 1.25 lakh cusecs at 6 pm.
Officials of the Water Resources Department (WRD) are maintaining a round-the-clock vigil.
The 120-feet Mettur dam reached its full capacity for the fourth time this year and continues to discharge over one lakh cusecs since Sunday. The entire inflow of 1.10 lakh has been discharged from the dam on Monday evening.
