With floodwaters beginning to recede from the upper reaches of the river basins of the Pampa and Manimala, the flood situation turned grim in the lower reaches of the upper Kuttanad region of Thiruvalla taluk on Tuesday.
Many low-lying areas of the upper Kuttanad reaches of Mepral, Kadapra, Niranom, and Peringara have been inundated. Various rural roads have been submerged in the floodwaters. Several housing colonies located in this low-lying part of Pathanamthitta district were also inundated on Tuesday.
Relief camps
The district administration has opened five relief camps in the district. As many as 154 people belonging to 42 families have been shifted to these camps by Tuesday afternoon.
Local people taking their children and other family members in country boats and rafts made of banana trunks and bamboo pols through the flooded rural roads and across the inundated paddy fields was a common scene in upper Kuttanad. People stayed indoors fearing the flood threat looming large in this low-lying belt. The Scheduled Caste settlements of Kazhuppil colony, Ambedkar colony, Mundappally colony and Alamthuruthy colony in Upper Kuttanad have remained surrounded by floodwaters. Many parts of the Kuttoor-Vallamkulam Road have been submerged in the floodwaters. Drinking water scarcity is a major problem facing the flood-hit areas. Many wells in the region have been flooded, contaminating the well water. Authorities have issued a warning to those residing along the river banks of the Pampa, Manimala, and Kakkattar, as there are chances of opening the shutters of the Moozhiyar dam if the inflow continued to be heavy.