Illegal digging of bunds caused Voleru breach: Collector

Guntur Nov 10 : What caused the breach of Right Flood Bank of River Krishna at Kollapalem,a hamlet of Voleru village,was purely man-made and an outcome of human greed.Guntur District Collector B Ramanjaneyulu, who conducted the probe into Voleru breach, on Tuesday admitted that the lose soil on top and the sides gave in leading to the breach. Another major cause was the frequent digging of bund for laying pipelines to irrigate saline lands along the river by drawing water from Vellatur branch canal running along the flood bank.He said the lands along the river inside the flood bank usually get saline water from the sea and lands are infertile, but a few rich and influential people illegally got the bund dug up and lay pipelines from Vellatur branch canal to irrigate their lands with sweet water.

The vents that were not properly packed, gave scope for minor leaks and over a period of time developed into major vulnerable spots for breach during heavy flow of water.The contractors did not fill the vulnerable spots and fresh soil led to the widening.The indifference of the officials to the suggestion to stack sand bags at the crucial points made matters worse, as they could not procure adequate number of bags, he added.
It may be recalled that Repalle Sub-divisional Engineer Harshang was suspended for ‘negligence’ in allowing a breach in the flood bank at Voleru.