Heavy rain lashes Pune, alert issued for low-lying areas as water released from Khadakwasla dam
The water discharge started at 2,000 cusecs in the afternoon and increased to 8,734 cusecs by 7pm Thursday.
The water resources department began releasing water from Khadakwasla dam in the afternoon. (Express photo by Arul Horizon) Amid the incessant rain in the city and upstream of the Mutha river raising the water level in the Khadakwasla dam, the district Water Resources Department on Thursday alerted the PMC to ensure the safety of citizens in low lying areas alongside the river as it started releasing water from the dam into Mutha river and will further increase the discharge if rain continues.
“The water resources department began releasing water from Khadakwasla dam in the afternoon and has decided to increase discharge into the Mutha river. Thus, the civic administration should alert localities in and around the river. Use of public address system should also be done for the purpose,” said Prithviraj B P, Additional Municipal Commissioner of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).
The water discharge started at 2,000 cusecs in the afternoon and increased to 8,734 cusecs by 7pm Thursday, with a warning that the water discharge maybe further facilitated if required.
The PMC has appealed to citizens to remove their parked vehicles and cattle from the riverbed and also stop using the river bridge at Nanded city to avoid accidents.
Pune witnessed waterlogging in parts of city with water gushing into localities in Hingane and Parvati areas. The PMC cleared the blockage in storm water drains to prevent waterlogging and also removed fallen branches of trees from roads.
The civic body said it has put its disaster management cell on alert and directed it to take swift action for the relief and rescue of citizens in case of an emergency. All ward offices have a disaster management cell for their respective areas to resolve complaints of waterlogging, tree felling, drain blockage, and other related issues.
The city has been witnessing rain since Wednesday night, which intensified on Thursday morning, causing inconvenience to citizens during peak hours as they commuted to schools, colleges, and offices. However, the intensity of rain reduced by evening.
“The civic administration has identified 71 shelter facilities, mainly civic schools and halls, for rain-affected localities in case they need to be shifted due to flooding. A 24×7 flood control room is operational in the main building and at all 15 ward offices. The civic body has also readied pumps, jetting machines, JCBs, and rubber boats to tackle waterlogging and flooding,” said Ganesh Sonune, Disaster Management Officer of PMC.
Meanwhile, PMC chief Naval Kishore Ram directed the roads department to complete the repair and maintenance of all bridges in the city.
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