Inundation, crop damage reported as incessant rain lashes Vellore and nearby districts

Incessant rain causes flooding in Vellore and neighboring areas, leading to power cuts and crop damage. Helplines available.

Incessant rain lashed many parts of Vellore town, including the Bengaluru Highway (NH 44), and neighbouring places like Ambur, Vaniyambadi, Arani, Gudiyatham, Tiruvannamalai town, Chengam, Polur and Tirupattur town on Saturday.

Low-lying areas like Sampath Nagar and Kansalpet in Old Town within Vellore Corporation limits, were inundated due to continuous rainfall. Frequent power cuts were also reported in many areas in Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur and Tiruvannamalai districts due to non-stop rain throughout the day. “Due to the ongoing underground drainage work, many stretches in the town were not re-laid. This caused great inconvenience to residents within Vellore Corporation limits,” said K. Vasantha, a resident.

Among districts, Vellore received 99.4 mm rain, the highest amount of rainfall, followed by Ranipet with 40.7 mm and Tiruvannamalai 15.4 mm. In major towns, Katpadi in Vellore district received the highest rainfall of 21.4 mm, followed by Vellore Anaicut with 20.6 mm and Arakkonam in Ranipet district recorded 13.6 mm as of 6 a.m. on Saturday.

Areas like Arani, Jamunamarathur (Jawadhu Hills), Polur, Tiruvannamalai town, Kilpennathur and Thandarampattu in Tiruvannamalai district received significant rainfall. In Vellore, areas like Pernambut, Gudiyatham, Katpadi, Vellore Old Town, Bagayam and Sathuvachari witnessed continuous downpour since Saturday morning.

Banana crop suffered damage in areas like Sholinghur, Thimir, Kaveripakkam in Ranipet. Farming areas like Arani, Polur and Kalasapakkam in Tiruvannamalai that are located along the Then Pennar river were also affected due to the rainfall. “As per norms, crop damage to an extent of 33 per cent and above for every one acre of cultivable land will be eligible for compensation. The total crop damage will be assessed after the rain stops,” K. Selvaraj, Joint Director (In-charge), Agriculture department (Ranipet), told The Hindu.

Waterbodies in these districts are also filling up faster. Currently, there are 4,167 waterbodies, including 1,119 Minor Irrigation (MI) tanks that are maintained by the WRD. These are also inclusive of ponds, lakes, ooranis that are under the maintenance of the DRDA. WRD officials said that of the 519 irrigation tanks in Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupattur districts, 29 have reached their full capacity on Saturday. An alert has been issued to villagers residing along the water channels where excess rainwater from these reservoirs are being released. 

Damage to property and livestock have been reported. A portion of Government Middle School in Arcot town near Ranipet collapsed after a tree fell on it. No one was injured as it was a rain holiday. In Arakkonam, a three-year-old cow got electrocuted when the animal stepped on a snapped live electric wire near the shed.