Water has started receding in Maharashtra's flood-hit Kolhapur district and the Mumbai-Bengaluru national highway, which has been closed due to water-logging for last six days, is likely to open on Monday, officials said. Continuous discharge of water from Almatti dam in Karnataka brought down the water level of the Panchganga riverin Kolhapur where it was flowing above the danger mark. Kolhapur and Sangli districts have been battling unprecedented floods since the last eight days following heavy rains in Konkan and western parts of the state where 40 people have lost their lives in the deluge.

#Maharashtra: A relief camp has been set up by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in flood-affected Sangli district. The organization will also distribute food packets to people in the area. pic.twitter.com/CNVrD1dg56

— ANI (@ANI) August 11, 2019

The Mumbai-Bengaluru National Highway No. 4 has been shut for last six days due to flooding and is likely to open for vehicular movement on Monday once the water recedes, an official said. Thousands of heavy vehicles have been stuck on both sides of the highway since flooding occurred there, he noted. "The highway will be opened for vehicular traffic only after the water recedes completely," Kolhapur's Superintendent of Police Abhinav Deshmukh said.