Several areas in Cuttack have been waterlogged following heavy downpour since last night while water has rushed into many houses in low-lying areas at Pithapur, Sutahat, Roxy Lane, Badambadi, Tulasipur, Deula Sahi, Kanika Chhak, Shelter Chhak, Rajabagicha and Dolamundai.
The traffic movement in the city came to a grinding halt today, as water from drains flowing on the roads inundated several localities.
Meanwhile, local residents in Cuttack have blamed the lack of preparedness on part of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) and district administration to deal with such emergency.
"Already the Met department had forecast heavy rain. Today's waterlogging clearly shows that no concrete measures were undertaken by the authorities in advance," said Sushant Muduli, a local resident.
Following the deluge, Odisha government ordered the closure of all schools and educational institutions in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar today.
"Since 4 am, we are awake as water started to enter the houses in our locality. We had to move all the household articles to safer places," said Suresh, a resident of Pithapur.
Normal life in Bhubaneswar was also adversely affected following the heavy rain with residents of Acharya Vihar, Nayapalli, Jaydev Vihar, Patia and Sailashree Vihar battling with waterlogging. Local residents blamed the authorities of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) for failing to resolve waterlogging issues.
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Apart from Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, normal life across Odisha was also adversely affected today. Rituals at Alarnath temple in Brahmagiri of Puri district had to be stopped after rain water entered the temple premises today. Devotees blamed poor drainage systems for such chaos at the scared shrine.
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Devotees from across the State who have thronged Puri for the 'Bahuda Yatra' of the Trinity to be celebrated tomorrow were also left in lurch as they had to wade through knee deep waters.
Several areas including Badadanda, Market Chhak and Marchikote Chhak area of the town remained waterlogged following the heavy rain that lashed the city since yesterday.
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The Regional Meteorological Centre today forecast heavy rainfall for Odisha in the next 48 hours. As per the latest bulletin, heavy to very heavy rain will occur at isolated places in coastal areas as the low pressure over North-west Bay of Bengal turned into a depression today.
The low pressure area, formed over the west-central Bay of Bengal, is likely to intensify into a depression by Thursday night, the Meteorological Centre here said.
Under its impact, light to moderate rain will lash most parts of Odisha till Saturday, while many areas may receive heavy downpour, the MeT Centre said.
Heavy rain in Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Malkangiri, Koraput and Rayagada districts since Wednesday morning inundated several low-lying areas and disrupted vehicular movement, officials said.
The state capital Bhubaneswar and parts of Cuttack, Balasore, Bhadrak and Khurda districts also received rain of varied intensity during the day, they said.
The MeT Centre has issued "yellow" warning (be updated) for Malkangiri, Koraput and Gajapati districts till Thursday morning and predicted heavy to very heavy rain in these districts during the period.
Heavy rainfall was also forecast in parts of Ganjam, Puri, Rayagada, Kandhamal and Nabarangpur districts.
The MeT Centre has issued "orange" warning (be prepared) for Nuapada, Baragarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh and Keonjhar districts from Thursday morning to Friday morning, predicting heavy to very heavy rain during the period.
Heavy rain is also likely to pound Kalahandi, Balangir, Sonepur, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Puri, Khordha and Cuttack districts during the same period, it said.
The weather department has issued a yellow warning for Sundargarh, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Balasore and Bhadrak districts from Friday to Saturday morning, forecasting heavy rain during the period.
Also, the MeT Centre has predicted that a squally weather condition with gusty surface winds of up to 50 kmph velocity is likely to prevail along and off the south Odisha coast, advising fishermen not to venture into the sea till Thursday.