Bhubaneswar, July 31: The Mahanadi river continued to swell on Thursday, raising flood concerns across several districts of Odisha. By 9 p.m., the water discharge at Mundali reached 873,063 cusecs and was expected to cross 900,000 cusecs overnight. At Naraj, the river crossed the danger mark with the water level touching 26.44 metres.

Despite reduced rainfall in Odisha and Chhattisgarh, heavy inflows from the Tel River and other tributaries have kept river levels rising. Low-lying areas in Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Kendrapara, Khordha, Nayagarh, Boudh, and Nuapada have been affected, with several villages inundated or cut off due to floodwaters. Rescue operations have been intensified in vulnerable areas, while authorities have restricted access to the Dhabaleswar Temple for 48 hours.

The Hirakud reservoir level rose to 621.81 feet by 9 p.m. The reservoir received an inflow of 319,227 cusecs, while only 65,159 cusecs was being released through two gates. Officials are expected to decide on opening additional gates as inflows remain significantly higher than outflows.

The state government has placed flood-prone districts on high alert, identified vulnerable villages, and kept relief shelters ready. Educational institutions in Khordha remained closed, and leave for government officials has been cancelled to ensure round-the-clock preparedness.

Although rainfall has eased temporarily, forecasts of fresh rain over the next two to three days have raised concerns that the flood situation could worsen across both upstream and downstream regions.