VIJAYAWADA: Krishna Teja, Sub-Collector of Kuttanad in Alappuzha district of Kerala, was accorded a warm welcome at the Gannavaram Airport on Thursday. He has been credited with saving the lives of two lakh people during the catastrophic floods in Kerala.
In a tete-e-tete with TNIE, the sub-collector explained how along with the lives of two lakh people, 12,000 cattle were saved with the help of local bodies and citizens.
“Four or five people had to manoeuvre a cow into a boat or a vehicle to save it. Some got hurt while shifting the cattle to safety. We could reach out to the people with the help of local panchayats and volunteers,” said Teja.
The Sub-Collector stated that around 56,000 people volunteered to help the affected people, when the Kerala government sought help through social media.
He was all praise for Telugu celebrities for helping the Kerala flood victims. He praised TV anchor Suma and her husband Rajiv Kanakala for adopting a dilapidated health centre. He added that 10 more celebrities have expressed interest in adopting damaged health centres across Kerala.
He said that World Health Organisation (WHO) had speculated that heavy floods might lead to outbreak of diseases.
“However, they were surprised with the way we contained the diseases by inoculating three lakh people with doxycycline and taking countermeasures against any possible outbreak.”
Teja said that the residents were initially hesitant to be evacuated out of Kuttanad when the Sub-Collector’s office received information about the rise in water levels in dams.
“They thought there was no necessity and I was being overanxious as I was a young officer. After the residents were evacuated, the whole area was submerged up to 6-9 feet. That’s when they hailed my swift action,” he said.