The Budameru, one of the major drains in Andhra Pradesh, has turned out to be an epicentre for heated political debate following the flooding and inundation of many residential localities in Vijayawada.
A war of words has erupted between Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and his predecessor Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, with both blaming one another for the flooding of areas such as Ajithsingh Nagar, Payakapuram, YSR Colony, among others.
Notwithstanding the ongoing political slugfest, it is evident that the flooding of residential localities is a man-made tragedy rather than nature’s fury.
The successive governments haven’t paid enough attention to the Budameru issue. The negligence of the Water Resources Department (WRD) has only made things worse.
Firstly, a head regulator constructed at Velagaleru on the drain is poorly maintained. Its gates hardly function. And there are many breaches to the drain. Plans to increase the capacity of the Budameru Diversion Channel (BDC) to 10,000 cusecs still remain on paper.
More than 60,000 cusecs of flood reached Budameru from Khammam in Telangana due to heavy rains in just four days.
The governments have neither taken up works to modernise the drain nor remove encroachments on it. Also, the WRD hasn’t taken up steps to plug the breaches.
The water level at Prakasam Barrage should not be more than 12 feet if the flood from Budameru is to join the river Krishna.
But the floodwater that reached the barrage was much higher. More than 11.50 lakh cusecs was discharged into the sea as the Krishna was in spate and flowing at a higher level compared to the Budameru. Resultantly, the flood in Budameru did not join the river and overflowed into residential areas such as Jakkampudi, Ajithsingh Nagar, Vambay Colony, and Milk Factory.
Secondly, the proposal worth ₹500 crore for modernisation of Budameru made during the TDP term during 2014-19 was not taken forward.
The drain passes through Bhavanipurm, Vidyadharapuram, Ayodhya Nagar, Madhura Nagar, and Kanaka Durga Colony, and runs parallel to the Eluru Canal.
Given the demand for residential plots, the land close to the drain was illegally occupied. The parties in power have turned a blind eye to the encroachments.
Thirdly, the WRD, the Municipal Administration and other government agencies have not worked in tandem. Also, the WRD officials have, apparently, failed to take appropriate decisions and manage the huge flood reaching Budameru.
The WRD officials reportedly lifted the gates at Velagaleru to prevent flooding near the VTPS and other adjoining areas. But, they allegedly did not alert the civic authorities in Vijayawada. Consequently, the flood from Budameru inundated many residential localities. There was little scope to evacuate the people from the low-lying areas.
The drain begins near Mylavaram. Pulivagu, Bhimavagu, Loyavagu, in G. Kondur mandal, and few other streams en route Vissannapeta, Tiruvur join the Budameru. The drain passes through Gudavalli, Gannavaram, Bapulapadu, Gudivada and Nandivada and other places before merging with Kolleru Lake.
The maximum capacity of the drain is 11,000 cusecs. In order to regulate the flow, a head regulator was constructed at Velagaleru in G. Konduru mandal in 1970. The WRD used to regulate the flood there.
Later, Budameru Diversion Channel (BDC) was constructed. The purpose is to divert the surplus water into the Krishna at Pavitrasangamam, near Ibrahimpatnam. The VTPS also releases wastewater into the river via the BDC.
In 2005, about 70,000 cusecs of floodwater was recorded in Budameru. The political parties then fought on behalf of the victims in Vijayawada.
To avoid flooding in the city, it was felt that modernisation of the canal and increasing its capacity was necessary. Later, the Polavaram right canal was joined with Budameru to link Polavaram and Krishna.
While the Polavaram canal is designed to handle 37,500 cusecs, the present capacity is 8,500 cusecs only.
For the last 8 years, water from Pattiseema is joining the Krishna through this canal. The BDC capacity needs to be increased to 10,000 cusecs.
Published - September 05, 2024 03:05 am IST
