The Odisha government on Friday deployed NDRF and ODRAF personnel to speed up rescue and relief operations mainly in three districts where over 60 lakh people were affected by flood due to heavy rainfall triggered by Cyclone Titli.
The flood situation in three south Odisha districts – Ganjam, Gajapati and Rayagada is grim as the water levels in major rivers like Rushikulya and Bansadhara have crossed their danger marks, official sources said.
The districts received the highest rainfall for three days under the impact of Cyclone Titli that made landfall at Palasa near Gopalpur in Ganjam on Thursday morning.
Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) B P Sethi said that the people in Balasore district were also affected by the flood. The decision to deploy National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) as part of stepping up relief and rescue operation was taken at a high-level meeting where Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik took stock of the situation in the aftermath of the very severe cyclonic storm that battered the state.
In a video conference with the district collectors of Ganjam, Gajapati and Rayagada, Patnaik gave instructions for intensifying rescue and relief operation on a war footing as miseries of the people got compounded due to the twin calamities of cyclone and floods.
Patnaik stressed on quick repair of breaches in several river embankments and asked the district collectors to provide cooked food to the people who were shifted to relief camps, the official said.
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