the goan I network
BELAGAVI
With torrential rains once again lashing the upper Ghats region of Khanapur taluka, river Malaprabha, river Mhadei and rivulets in the region bordering Karnataka and Goa are once again in spate. The danger of possible floods is looming large over Khanapur taluka once again. With no signs of rains receding, villages have already been isolated from the mainland as the bridges and bunds have started submerging.
According to villagers from Kankumbi, as heavy rains continue lashing Kankumbi & Jamboti region, travelling on the Belagavi-Goa road via Chorla may not be advised due to uncertainty of the road condition.
With the memories of the heavy rains that caused havoc in Khanapur and Belagavi region in early August this year still afresh, villagers in Khanapur taluka are living in fear, According to sources, villagers from some of the remote villages have started abandoning their homes and shifted elsewhere under the threat of getting marooned due to flooding of rivers and rivulets.
According to information from the official sources, River Malaprabha that was in spate in the first week of August has already started swelling. The inflow in the Navilatirth Dam near Soudatti was recorded at 16,100 cusecs, due to which the dam had already started overflowing for the second time in a year with a water level exceeding its maximum level of 2079.50 ft.
Thus overnight the situation is expected to worsen as about 40 villages in Shiroli, Nilavade and Londa are expected to be isolated due to overflowing of water on few more bridges.
“This is for the first time, the Navilatirthu dam is full since its construction and that too it is overflowing for the second time in a rainy season,” a senior official attached with irrigation department said.
Meanwhile, rains continued lashing Belagavi, Chikkodi, Hukkeri and neighbouring talukas, especially the catchment areas of Ghataprabha, Hiranyakeshi and Krishna River.
The situation here is expected to worsen due to increased inflow of water from dams in Maharashtra, that had reached 1,53,229 cusecs by Friday afternoon.
The situation may turn grim by Saturday if the rains do not recede by Friday night, sources said.
