Rainwater enters houses in Belagavi, Khanapur; relief centres set up

Water entered houses in Belagavi city and Khanapur town following heavy rain on Tuesday. Residents of Samarth Nagar, Raghunath Pet, Jhatphat Colony near the Fourth Gate, and Jakkeri Honda spent most of the day flushing out water from their houses. The city corporation opened six relief centres to help residents in low-lying areas.

Offices of the Kannada and Culture Department in Kumar Gandharva Hall in Belagavi and the Railway Police Station were inundated. The road between the city railway station and the post office was below water and entry to the front gate of the post office was blocked. Users had to enter the office from the rear side.

Officers said that drinking water supply to Belagavi city will be affected in the coming three-four days, as pumping stations in Hindalga and Rakkaskoppa are inundated. Heavy rain in Belagavi and surrounding areas have led to water overflowing from the Rakkasakoppa reservoir. This has made the pumping stations inoperable.

Water cannot be supplied to the city for a few days. Once the water level subsides to such levels as to allow the entry of maintenance personnel, water supply can be resumed, Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board said in a release.

In Khanapur, water began to flow over the Malaprabha bridge between Khanapur and Nandagad, cutting off all traffic. Malaprabha river water entered some areas near the Lakshmi temple and taluk auditorium. It entered several houses.

Irrigation engineers are likely to increase the outflow from Navilu Teertha dam on the Malaprabha near Saundatti in Belagavi following heavy rain in the river’s catchment areas in Khanapur and Belagavi taluks. The outflow is 6,000 cusecs and it could increase, Superintending Engineer Jagadish Nayak said.