AP: Flood management plan helped Amaravati prevent flooding during recent heavy rains
Sep 10, 2024
Amaravati ( Andhra Pradesh) [India], September 10 : Amaravati, the state capital of Andhra Pradesh, resilience in the face of heavy rainfall is a testament to the effectiveness of its flood management plan, solidifying its reputation as a robust and well-prepared capital city.
Officials attribute this success to the comprehensive flood management plan implemented during the previous regime of Chandrababu Naidu (2014-19).
The plan, designed by Tata Consulting Engineers and approved by the then-government, focused on addressing flooding in the Kondaveedu Stream and its drainage systems.
With an estimated cost of Rs 2,163 crores, the project included several canals and drainage mechanisms, with the Kondaveeti Vagu pump house being a crucial component.
Completed in September 2018, the pump house has a capacity to discharge 5,000 cusecs of floodwater into the river. Additional pump houses are planned, including one at Vaikundapuram (5,600 cusecs), Gunadavalli (12,000 cusecs), and another discharging 4,000 cusecs into the Bangya canal.
In the first phase, Rs 225 crores was spent and a pump house was developed (called the Kondaveeti Vagu Pump House). The Kondaveeti Vagu was commissioned in September 2018, before the previous TDP government demitted office.
Chief Engineer Dhanunjay of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority explained that the design is based on rainfall data from the past 100 years, ensuring the pump houses can handle future flood situations.
"We have constructed one pump house that has the capacity of discharging 5,000 cusecs of flood water into the river. The three pump houses will come soon; one is at Vaikundapuram that will have a capacity of discharging 5600 cusecs of water into the river; the pump houses that are going to be constructed in Gunadavalli have a capacity of discharging 12,000 cues, and the remaining 4,000 cusecs of water will be discharged into the Bangya canal. The study is based on the last 100 years of rainfall data around Amaravati that is sufficient for the designing of all the pump houses," Dhanunjay, chief engineer, Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority, told ANI.
