GULBARGA: The Bhima, which is in spate, has claimed one more victim taking the toll in the floods this year to six in the district. The district administration on Wednesday confirmed that a woman of Bhosga village in Afzalpur taluk had drowned in floodwaters on Tuesday.

Officials said here on Wednesday that Moulali Tukaram Bajantari, 35, who tried to cross a flooded nala at Desai Kallur village slipped into the floodwaters and was washed away. His body is yet to be recovered.

Meanwhile, the situation in the villages on the banks of the Bhima continued to improve with a sharp reduction in the floodwater-level in Afzalpur and Jewargi taluks. But floodwaters were yet to recede in villages on the banks of the river and its tributaries in Chitapur, Yadgir and Shahapur taluks.

But increased discharge of water from the Ujani and Veerbhatkal reservoirs in Maharashtra has renewed fears of the level of the Bhima rising again. The discharge from the reservoirs has been increased to more than 1.42 lakh cusecs as against 1.03 lakh cusecs on Tuesday.

The movement of vehicles on the Devangaon bridge, which was suspended for four days, resumed on Wednesday.

The water-level at the Kattisangavi bridge in Jewargi taluk has also started receding.

Despite the floodwaters receding, people were still arriving at relief camps in different parts of the district. The camps now have 2,513 families comprising 12,800 people.

According to a preliminary survey conducted by the Revenue Department, standing crops in 10,664 hectares estimated at Rs. 2.6 crore have been lost.

Krishna rising

Bijapur Staff Correspondent writes:

The situation along the Krishna deteriorated further on Wednesday with an increase in the inflow into the Alamatti dam. The inflow, which was 3,58,710 cusecs on Tuesday, increased to 3,70,458 cusecs. The water-level in the dam touched 518.05 metres. The discharge was increased to 3.34 lakh cusecs from 3.2 lakh cusecs.

As result of this, the situation downstream of the Alamatti dam worsened. The Sangamanath Temple at the Koodalasangama, and Turadagi, Katgur, and a few other villages in Hungund taluk continued to be flooded.

Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa will undertake an aerial survey of the flood-affected taluks on Thursday.

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