Incessant rains cripple Tirupati dist, authorities on high alert

 Tirupati: Continuous heavy rainfall since Tuesday night has brought life to a standstill across several parts of Tirupati district, inundating low-lying areas and severely disrupting daily activities. The district administration declared holiday for all educational institutions on Wednesday as a precautionary measure and issued a high alert in view of the worsening situation.

Srikalahasti, Kota, Chittamuru, and Vakadu mandals have been receiving heavy rains for the past four days, causing severe inconvenience to residents, particularly fishermen and those living in rural areas. In Kurrakalva near Tirupati, several houses in Padmanagar were submerged, forcing people to wade through waterlogged streets. The situation worsened near Mulakona waterfalls, where water level rose to dangerous levels, prompting officials to suspend public entry for safety reasons. Transportation was severely affected in several parts of the district. Flow of Swarnamukhi river cut off access to Modugula Palem village in Yerpedu mandal of Srikalahasti constituency. In Vedurukuppam mandal of Chittoor district, heavy flooding on Devalampet Road disrupted traffic movement. Many rural low-lying areas across the district were inundated, causing hardship to hundreds of families. Several tanks and reservoirs reached their full capacities due to incessant inflows. NTR and Krishnapuram reservoirs received huge volumes of water, leading officials to lift two gates at both places to release the excess.

In Tirupati district, two gates of Swarnamukhi barrage at Vakadu were opened to divert 500 cusecs of water into a nearby tank through head regulator. Kalyani dam near Tirupati also continued to receive heavy inflows.

All dams in Tirumala are recording significant inflows, with Kapilatheertham and Malwadi Gundam waterfalls in Tirupati flowing in full force. In Renigunta mandal, Joint Collector and Municipal Corporation Commissioner N Mourya visited Mallemadugu reservoir on Wednesday evening, accompanied by engineering officials. She instructed them to remain alert and monitor inflow situation continuously to prevent any untoward incidents. Along Swarnamukhi river belt, including Thanapalli and Tiruchanoor, police have been deployed to monitor the situation and regulate traffic.