Rayalacheruvu Tank Breach in Tirupati District Causes Flash Floods; No Casualties Reported
An early-morning tank breach floods Tirupati villages; officials oversee rescue, and an MP releases ₹20 lakh for relief measures.
The Rayalacheruvu tank in Pathapalem village, KV B Puram mandal, breached early Thursday morning around 5 am, unleashing flash floods that inundated Pathapalem, Kalatturu, and neighbouring villages in Tirupati district. The sudden bund failure caused swirling waters to sweep through low-lying areas, forcing residents to climb rooftops for safety and resulting in several cattle being washed away, though no human casualties were reported amid the chaos.
Tirupati District Collector S. Venkateswar and Superintendent of Police L. Subbarayadu rushed to the affected sites to supervise relief efforts, deploying police teams from KV B Puram, Satyavedu, and Pichatur under Puttur DSP Ravi Kumar for rescue and evacuation operations. The Collector personally interacted with distraught villagers, assuring comprehensive government assistance, including temporary shelters and food supplies, as hundreds were displaced by the deluge.
Locals blamed the breach on neglected maintenance, alleging that repairs carried out under the 2014-19 Neeru-Chettu scheme were never reinforced despite repeated warnings about the bund's weakening structure. The incident highlights ongoing vulnerabilities in rural water bodies across Andhra Pradesh, where heavy rains often expose decades-old infrastructure gaps.
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In a swift response from New Delhi, Tirupati MP Maddila Gurumoorthy contacted the Collector and Sullurpet RDO, directing immediate aid measures. He sanctioned ₹20 lakh from his MPLADS funds for emergency relief and urged the state government to provide ₹5 lakh compensation per affected family, emphasising the need for rehabilitation and preventive strengthening of similar tanks ahead of the northeast monsoon peak.
As water levels recede, authorities have set up relief camps while engineers assess the damage, with calls mounting for a statewide audit of irrigation tanks to avert future disasters in this flood-prone region. The breach serves as a stark reminder of climate-induced risks amplifying age-old infrastructure woes in coastal Andhra.
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