Lack of planning led to flooding in Paithan: Gorde

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Due to poor water management by the Water Resources Department, floodwaters entered Paithan city and surrounding rural areas, alleged Uddhav Sena’s deputy district chief Dattatray Gorde at a press conference held here.

Gorde said that heavy rains had lashed Paithan city and the tehsil for the past fifteen days. The Jayakwadi Dam had reached full capacity. Despite the Meteorological Department issuing a heavy rainfall warning on Friday, why was the water not released in a planned manner? On Sunday evening, over three lakh cusecs of water were suddenly released from the Jayakwadi Dam into the Godavari river, submerging houses and agricultural fields along its banks. Many areas faced severe flooding. According to Gorde, the Water Resources Department had no proper planning for releasing the water. If the release had been planned appropriately, the houses and farms in Paithan city and rural areas could have been spared from damage. He held the Jayakwadi division administration responsible for the losses and stated that farmers would file complaints seeking registration of cases against the officials involved. The press conference was attended by Ajay Paralkar, Kalyan Magre, and others.