Bhubaneswar: A deep depression over the northwest Bay of Bengal moved slowly towards the Odisha-West Bengal coast on Monday, prompting the Odisha govt to put district administrations on high alert as the IMD forecast heavy rain across large parts of the state till July 29.The special relief commissioner’s office issued an advisory to all collectors, asking them to keep administrative machinery ready to deal with any situation arising from heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, waterlogging and localised flooding.Several districts, including Sundargarh, Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj, received heavy rain on Monday. Even Bhubaneswar received rainfall too. The IMD issued an orange warning for 19 districts, including Balasore, Bhadrak, Cuttack, Sambalpur and Kalahandi. A yellow warning was issued for Khurda, Puri, Ganjam, Koraput and several other districts.After reviewing the situation, revenue minister Suresh Pujari said there was no alarming situation anywhere in the state, though rain triggered by the depression continued in some pockets.Pujari said all major rivers were flowing below the danger mark and there was no immediate flood threat. He added that the govt remained prepared to handle any rain-related situation and necessary instructions had been issued to all departments concerned.IMD Bhubaneswar director Manorama Mohanty said the state was likely to witness scattered rainfall activity by Wednesday. She said four places recorded very heavy rainfall and 14 places received heavy rainfall in the last 24 hours. “With the continuing rain, the state’s cumulative monsoon rainfall has touched 20% excess against the normal by Monday,” she said.Banki in Cuttack district recorded 19 cm rainfall in the 24 hours ending Monday morning, while Athagarh received 17 cm. Sonepur and Kendrapada also witnessed heavy precipitation.Sea conditions are expected to remain rough to very rough, and fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea till July 29. Local cautionary signal no. III has been hoisted at all Odisha ports.Authorities have cautioned officials about possible waterlogging in urban areas, disruption of road and rail traffic, damage to standing crops, uprooting of trees and landslides in vulnerable locations. A flash flood risk has also been flagged for several districts, including Cuttack, Balasore and Sambalpur.The SRC has directed collectors to closely monitor the situation, take preventive measures and immediately report any damage caused by heavy rain, thunderstorms, lightning or strong winds.
