Puri residents in deep water as admin stays away

PURI: Residents of ward no 1, Sujata Nagar and Matitota Basti in Puri town are cut-off from the rest of the world for the last five days due to flash floods but the administration is reportedly yet to come to their rescue. The area was flooded after a 30-metre breach occurred at Sarbandh road near Talajangh, Karpura and Harichandanpur villages.

A majority of the 2,000 families residing in the localities do not yet have access to cooked food. The locals, most of whom have taken shelter on roofs of houses, said despite repeated complaints, the administration is yet to address their issues. The residents have arranged a country boat on their own for emergency use.

Similar is the plight of residents of Mangarajpur village in Kasiharipur gram panchayat of Puri Sadar block where over 100 families were marooned after flood water entered there through a breach in the embankment in Kanchi rivulet of Bhargavi river.

The affected people attributed the flooding to a massive pond dug by the administration for supplying drinking water to Puri town. The pond has reportedly blocked passage of natural water leading to flood in the areas. The locals urged the administration to provide them relief and take steps to drain out flood water from the affected areas.