Budameru flood crisis: Tracing the causes of a catastrophe

The devastating floods in Vijayawada city, caused by breaches in the Budameru rivulet, has highlighted a multitude of issues ranging from government neglect and lack of commitment on the part of successive governments to finding a permanent solution. What is most telling is the fact that the State government still lacks comprehensive data on the encroachments along the drain, despite a recurring pattern of the rivulet inundating entire swathes of farmland and residential areas along its course over the years. 

In 1956, leaders from the Socialist Party and the Congress Party launched a movement to draw attention to the hardships faced by the people whenever the Budameru overflowed. Since then, every political party has staged protests and agitations while in the opposition, but has done little to address the issue once in power. The recommendations of expert committees, such as the Mitra Committee in 1966, were largely ignored, with the exception of the construction of a head regulator at Velagaleru in G. Konduru mandal in 1970.

For decades, officials of the Water Resources Department (WRD) ignored the encroachments on the Budameru drain and its floodplains. Other government departments, such as revenue and local administration, have also failed to act, allowing these illegal developments to continue. Residential areas have been built with the tacit approval of these government agencies.

To circumvent legal issues, survey numbers from land parcels near the Budameru floodplain were used in land registrations, rather than from within the floodplain itself, in areas like Ramakrishnapuram, parts of Ajith Singh Nagar, Rajarajeswaripeta, and Ayodhya Nagar. With flood levels remaining below 15,000 cusecs over the last two decades, encroachments have become increasingly widespread, and rapid urbanisation has taken hold in these floodplain areas.

The consequences of unchecked greed have been severe, as the Budameru drain reclaimed its floodplains, which have gradually shrunk over the decades. For the first time since 2005, the waters of Budameru surged into the city, flooding streets and inundating homes and other structures built on its plains. The flooding caused losses amounting to thousands of crores of rupees in the encroached areas. The diversion channel, constructed in 2006-07, failed to manage the situation. In the first week of September, the Krishna River saw an unprecedented flow of over 11 lakh cusecs. The Polavaram Right Canal could not discharge the Budameru waters because the river’s water level was higher than that of the canal, causing a rebound effect, with around 50,000 cusecs of water rushing back into the city at tremendous speed.

The diversion channel was intended to direct the Budameru floodwaters into the Polavaram Right Canal, which has a capacity of 37,500 cusecs and ultimately empties into the Krishna River. Instead, the Budameru water was diverted to the Krishna River via the Vijayawada Thermal Power Station (VTPS) without constructing a new canal. However, the Polavaram Right Canal is designed to handle a maximum flow of 37,500 cusecs, far less than the 70,000 cusecs of floodwater that inundated Vijayawada this time. With no feasible way to increase the capacity of the existing cooling canal at VTPS, the necessary work has been stalled for the past 20 years.

While the annual average rainfall for the entire Krishna district is 98 cm, the Budameru catchment area received an astonishing 33 cm of rain in just 36 hours this year, leading to severe flooding. The problem typically occurs when the Budameru catchment experiences more than average rainfall within a 24-48 hour period. This causes the reservoir in Velagaleru village to reach critical levels, forcing the irrigation department to release water and triggering floods in Vijayawada. Additionally, there is considerable uncertainty regarding the bathymetry and width of the drain. Significant floods were caused by heavy rains in 1989, 1990, 1991, 2005, and 2009. The total discharges from the Budameru Diversion Channel (BDC) and Budameru course have varied from 3,722 cusecs in 1971 to 39,595 cusecs in 1964, with notable discharges of 26,080 cusecs in 1969, 34,996 cusecs in 1986, and 32,273 cusecs in 1990.

The maximum capacity of the Budameru drain is 11,000 cusecs. To manage this strong flow, a head regulator was built at Velagaleru in G. Konduru mandal in 1970, allowing the Water Resources Department (WRD) to control the floodwaters. Later, the Budameru Diversion Channel (BDC) was constructed to prevent flooding in the northern residential areas of Vijayawada, including New Rajarajeswaripet, Nandamuri Nagar, Nunna, Payakapuram, Singh Nagar, and Devi Nagar. The primary purpose of the BDC is to divert excess water from the Budameru into the Krishna at Pavitra Sangamam near Ibrahimpatnam. Additionally, the Vijayawada Thermal Power Station (VTPS) discharges wastewater into the river through the BDC. Subsequently, the Polavaram Right Canal was connected with Budameru to link the Polavaram project with the Krishna. While the Polavaram canal is designed for a capacity of 37,500 cusecs, its current capacity is only 8,500 cusecs. For the past eight years, water from the Pattiseema project has been channelled into the Krishna River through this canal.

Speaking to The Hindu, Water Resources Minister Nimmala Ramanaidu said the State government would develop an action plan for a permanent solution to the flooding issues. The current capacity of BDC is 15,000 cusecs, which is set to be increased to 35,000 cusecs. The government will also consider the capacity of the Polavaram canal, as it receives water from the Pattiseema project. Additionally, the focus will shift to managing the Budameru’s course from Enikepadu to Kolleru Lake. WRD officials have been asked to submit a report on the encroachments on irrigation lands, and ‘Operation Budameru’ will be initiated at a later stage, he added.

Despite the persistent problem of Budameru flooding, WRD officials currently have no information on encroachments. Superintending Engineer P. Gangaiah admitted, “We don’t have any information on the encroachments. We are yet to conduct a study.”

It is worth noting that the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) identified these issues in its City Development Plan (CDP) of 2011. The CDP clearly stated that indiscriminate blocking of the Budameru drain by developments and encroachments has led to significant problems, including loss of property, health issues, and sometimes loss of life. The CDP highlights indiscriminate human activities such as trespassing and construction within the Budameru flood zone. Out of the city’s 59 divisions, 26 are flood-affected, with eight divisions impacted by floods in the Krishna and 18 by Budameru floods.

The reality is that neither the WRD nor the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) has taken any effective steps to remove the encroachments.

In 2005, the Budameru recorded floodwaters of about 70,000 cusecs. Political parties then rallied on behalf of the victims in Vijayawada, and CPI-affiliated farmers’ union leader Kolli Nageswara Rao spearheaded a large-scale awareness campaign to explain the causes of the flooding. At that time, Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy proposed that diverting the rivulet away from the city was the only viable solution. YSR, as he was popularly known, had suggested that officials adjust the alignment of the Polavaram project’s right canal to address the issue of floodwaters and ensure a permanent solution for Vijayawada’s drinking water needs. Consequently, as part of the Polavaram project, the downstream flow of Budameru was redirected into the right canal by 2007-08.

Political parties in power have long permitted encroachments, using neighbouring land parcel survey numbers for registrations, keeping in mind real estate interests.

Approximately 20 years ago, this part of the city was sparsely populated, but it has since transformed into a bustling area with marketplaces and residential colonies, many of which have been built on floodplains. To mitigate flooding, modernisation of the canal and an increase in its capacity were deemed essential. Numerous agitations have taken place over the years, yet efforts to resolve the issue permanently have largely been overshadowed by political manouevring, resulting in the issue becoming a persistent curse for the city.

Proposals worth ₹500 crore for the modernisation of the Budameru canal were halted midway. The canal runs through areas such as Bhavanipurm, Vidyadharapuram, Ayodhya Nagar, Madhura Nagar, and Kanaka Durga Colony, parallel to the Eluru Canal. Due to high demand for residential plots, land adjacent to the drain was illegally occupied.

Political parties have largely ignored these encroachments while engaging in a campaign of mudslinging. The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has accused the previous YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) administration of neglecting the Budameru issue for five years. They claim that the YSRCP government cancelled work orders for strengthening the bunds of Budameru, which could have prevented the disaster. In turn, former Chief Minister and YSRCP president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy criticised the current government for opening the gates of the Velagaleru Regulator without warning the public.

The flood victims, meanwhile, silently go about the task of cleaning up their homes and colonies, aware that a solution to their travails is not going to come any time soon.