Lashed by heavy rains, Pachipenta is marooned

Visakhapatnam: Pachipenta mandal of Vizianagaram district adjoining Odisha has found itself marooned following the incessant rainfall during the past few days. The mandal is a remote area connected chiefly by one major road to the rest of the district. The road joins the National Highway at Konavalasa, which is seven kilometres away from Pachipenta village.
The road has virtually remained the same for over a hundred years.Even the culverts have not been repaired for decades now, despite the talk about building a road all the way from Pachipenta to Araku. Half way between Konavalasa and Pachipenta close to the Padmapuram revenue village is a culvert which was constructed almost a century ago to help the water from the Padmapuram hills to flow down towards the plains. This stream, which flows like a torrent, is referred to as Pothula Gedda, partly because bullocks were allowed to bathe in the stream and more importantly because of the force with which it flows during monsoon.
B Janaki, a resident of Pachipenta Yeguvu Street, said, "Unless the road is properly repaired and a bridge built over Pothulagedda, there will never be an end to this problem." Another old timer P Krishnaji of the Karanam street observed, "The old road was laid during the Zamindari days and today the present road is as much a metal road as it was then."
Locals have also complained that none of the local politicians seem to be taking an interest in repairing and modernising the road.
N Samba, a native of Pachipenta who works as an RTC driver in Salur, observed, "Whenever the Pothula Gedda overflows, it always poses problems for us. Sometimes the traffic is stranded for hours after incessant rainfall." More than 40 autos, tempo trucks and jeeps ply on the Pachipenta road on a daily basis.
The district administration has taken stock of the situation and sent a team of officials to evaluate the damage done to the crop, roads and irrigation tanks in the mandal. A watch is also being kept on the newly-constructed Peddagedda reservoir. The DPRO of Vizianagaram in an official notice said Pachipenta mandal is the worst hit in the entire district this season.