Pilgrims stranded as heavy rain floods Temple Town Tirupati

Tirupati: In Andhra Pradesh, the Temple Town Tirupati saw a lot of damage due to incessant rains, as some houses damaged, roads inundated and hundreds of pilgrims stranded owing to the depression in the Bay of Bengal. The state is experiencing severe rainfall from the past two days and paddy farm lands in several districts submerged with flood waters. 

The Temple Town, Tirupati is the most-affected  place in Andhra Pradesh due to the incessant rain from the past three days. Landslides have occurred in the Ghat Road and later brought normalcy and vehicles being allowed one-way by restricting the traffic. But, due to the fog on Ghat Road, en route Tirumala the vehicular traffic has been stopped at night time as precautionary measure.

Heavy rain generated by a low pressure area on the Bay of Bengal pounded Tirupati, paralysing daily life flooding low-lying areas and disrupting transportation and flight movement at Renigunta airport in Tirupati. The torrential rainfall affected Chittoor District in general and Tirupati and



Tirumala in particular. 

The two footpaths have been closed. Alipiri and Srivari Mettu, which have been closed for the past two days in view of heavy rain, also remained closed today due to the incessant weather conditions and rain. Due to the heavy rain since Wednesday night, pilgrims atop the Tirumala and in Tirupati City have remained stranded. The four mada streets have been waterlogged.  But, incidentally, the rain weather is getting receded quickly every time. The business activity atop of the hill came to a complete standstill, as pilgrims chose to remain inside their guest houses due to the continuous rainfall.

The State Government already issued orders to District Administration to take necessary steps during low pressure. Heavy rain lashed the Chittoor District for the second time in a fortnight, bringing all streams and waterfalls to life. The down pour continues in several pockets in Rayalaseema, South Andhra and North coastal AP and damaging paddy crops.