Apart from Kerala floods, heavy monsoon spell wreaks havoc in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh

Besides the monsoon fury which Kerala witnessed, other states were similarly affected due to spells of heavy rains, flooding, cyclonic warnings and landslides. The heavy rains triggered floods and landslips in the Kodagu district of Karnataka, where roads were flooded and paddy crops submerged. Located in the Western Ghats mountain ranges, this coffee-growing district, about 270 km from Bengaluru, is the worst-hit due to the south-west monsoon rains since June first week. About 123 km of roads are estimated to be damaged due to the rains, while more than 800 homes have been destroyed. Most of the district’s arterial roads have been damaged due to landslides, delaying the rescue operations, officials said . [caption id=“attachment_5022421” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Flooding in Kodagu. Image courtesy: Twitter/@adgpi[/caption] Due to a cyclone over Bay of Bengal, Odisha was alerted for heavy rains. At least 20 people died due to flash floods in the state. Fishermen were advised against venturing deep into the sea due to a cyclonic situation. Southern districts of Odisha were battered by torrential rains, leading to a flood-like situation and Malkangiri, Kandhamal, Koraput, Rayagada and Kalahandi received heavy to very heavy rainfall, causing widespread flooding and rise in water levels of many rivers. Roads and bridges in several parts washed away, which affected connectivity. Uttarakhand was also battered by heavy rains from 13 August and landslides triggered by the continuous rainfall closed major link roads. The water level of Ganga touched 293.8 metres, just a few inches below its danger level of 294 meters, reported The Times of India. Heavy rains in Himachal Pradesh claimed 16 lives and landslides led to the death of three persons in Mandi district. 923 roads were closed due to landslides, including six national highways, and that men and machinery had been pressed into service to open these roads. Heavy rains caused floods and landslides at Attakatti in Tamil Nadu. Landslides were also reported on certain routes of Aliyar-Valparai due to the heavy monsoon spell which has inundated states in Western Ghats. The  Mettur dam crossed its full level of 120 feet due to very heavy rainfall and flooded the Cauvery river in mid-August. Assam, which was in chaos due to the NCR row, also witnessed flooding from the month of June. According to Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA),  six districts were affected due to flooding and over 24,000 affected people took shelter in relief camps. Water of the river Doyang was released from the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO)’s dammed project to produce 25 megawatts of electricity, which flooded close to 10,000 hectares and nearly 1,00,000 people living around the project in both the states of Assam and Nagaland were affected, reported The Wire. The Meteorological Department issued a cyclone warning for Andhra Pradesh’s coastal districts and advised the fishermen against venturing into the sea and a low-pressure belt formed in the Bay of Bengal which turned into a depression, caused heavy rains in the coastal regions. Rains in Jammu and Kashmir also caused floods and landslides in the region. On 14 August, traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway had to be suspended due to multiple landslides in the Ramban district. As Kerala’s monsoon fury declines, the IMD has predicted that heavy to very heavy rains are likely at western Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Sikkim. While Uttarakhand, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam and Meghalaya may receive heavy rains at isolated places around 24 August. In the southern region, for the duration of 22 August to 25 August, the Met department has not issued any warning, but on 26 August heavy rains in Konkan region, Goa, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry are likely.