Jharsuguda:� The constant downpour since Sunday afternoon in Jharsuguda District as well as its adjoining areas had crippled normal life and caused traffic snarls at NH � 49 as it was jam due to uprooting of a tree on Monday.
The rain on Monday had also forced almost all the school and colleges in the district to close down. Many shops were seen closed and people stayed indoor since morning.
At NH � 49, due to heavy downpour, an old Banyan Tree at IB Temple had uprooted and had fallen on a truck and Hero Honda passion Bike which was crushed, luckily both drivers had escaped. It was also a narrow escape for the Shiv devotees who had came to IB Temple for the worship, as it was the first Monday of the Saavan Month.
�I parked my bike and had gone down to Worship at Temple, when I heard some noise, when I came out and saw the huge banyan tree had fallen over my bike.� Said Amit, the biker owner, resident of Ekatali , Jharsuguda
�Huge number of Shiv devotees �were present in early morning and if this had happened at that time , then casualty 
might have taken place, thank god it happened in morning , when a few devotees were present and remained unhurt � Said Ashok Pradhan , a resident of Brajrajnagar.
The road was cleared after the Jharsuguda Dist. Administrative officials reached the spot and had cleared the way.
Similarly , a Truck (OD -05P 0251) which was coming from the Kolabira to Jharsuguda, had washed away when it took a temporary service road , which was made due to ongoing construction of Bridge, was washed away due to the heavy flow of water.
�Jharsuguda Dist. received heavy downpour with almost all the blocks received more than 100 MM rainfall and Jharsuguda itself received around 155 mm of rainfall since yesterday, however the river IB has not reached at danger level, but we have alerted all the Dist. officials like Sub collector and Tehsildhar who are keeping a close watch on it.� Jharsuguda Dist. Collector Parameswaran B.
