Bhubaneswar, 28 September (H.S.) : The flood situation in the Mahanadi river system is likely to peak at Mundali in Cuttack district on Monday evening, with the water flow expected to remain below 8 lakh cusecs, a senior official of the Water Resources Department said.

Water Resources Department Engineer-in-Chief Dillip Kumar Rout said 7.83 lakh cusecs of water was flowing through Mundali at noon and the discharge was gradually increasing.

“However, as predicted, the water flow at Mundali is not expected to cross 8 lakh cusecs,” Rout told reporters.

He said the water level in the Hirakud reservoir stood at 629.52 feet, while the inflow into the reservoir was around 6.30 lakh cusecs. Till noon, 28 sluice gates of the Hirakud Dam had been opened, releasing around 5 lakh cusecs of water. Subsequently, two more gates were opened.

According to Rout, the flood situation is not expected to deteriorate further as the inflow into the Hirakud reservoir has started declining.

“At Saradih in Chhattisgarh, the inflow has declined from around 7 lakh cusecs to 6 lakh cusecs. The inflow into the Hirakud reservoir is also showing a declining trend,” he said.

The water level in the lower Tel basin at Patharla has also started receding. The discharge there declined to around 1.16 lakh cusecs from approximately 2.70 lakh cusecs recorded on Sunday.

Rout said there had been no significant rainfall in Odisha, with rainfall remaining below 30 mm in most areas.

He said the flood situation in the delta region covering Khordha, Puri, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur and parts of Kendrapada remained minor.

“We are closely monitoring the situation at Mundali and do not expect the water flow to exceed 8 lakh cusecs. The flood is likely to peak this evening and gradually recede thereafter,” Rout said.

He added that, apart from the Mahanadi, no other river in the state was currently facing a flood situation.

The authorities are continuing to closely monitor the Mahanadi river system and water levels at various locations, he added.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda