HYDERABAD: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and TPCC President Bomma Mahesh Kumar Goud, conducted an aerial survey of the flood-hit Kamareddy and Medak districts on Thursday.
He also visited the Sripada Yellampalli project in Peddapalli and reviewed the condition of the project with officials. The chief minister was scheduled to visit Kamareddy, but due to bad weather, his helicopter could not land. Later, he visited Medak, held a review meeting with officials and took stock of the situation.
Revanth said that during natural calamities, it is the responsibility of the authorities to stay alert and ensure no loss of life or crops. With heavy floods, people must also be careful, he added. He spoke to the chief secretary over phone and instructed him to prepare a report on crop loss for compensation. The district collector briefed him on the situation.
Earlier, during an informal interaction with reporters at Yellampalli, Revanth said the project was like the “oxygen and heart” of Godavari waters. Calling it a strategic location, he stressed that the Yellampalli project serves as a junction for Godavari waters and is the source of drinking water for Hyderabad. Alleging that the Kaleshwaram project has collapsed, he said: “Now, you have to understand the difference between Kaleshwaram and Yellampalli.”
Asked if the government would repair the Medigadda barrage, the chief minister said: “There are many technical problems at Medigadda. We have not read 80,000 books. We sought suggestions from those who have read 80,000 books on how to repair it.”
He said technical experts had pointed to design and operational lapses at Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages.
Indirectly referring to BRS leaders, he remarked: “Harish Rao is ‘Swathimutyam’ and KCR is ‘Animuthyam’ who built the Kaleshwaram project super smartly.”
Alert farmers, minimise crop loss: Thummala
Hyderabad: Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageswara Rao on Thursday instructed officials to initiate measures to minimise crop loss and also alert the farmers about the prevailing situation.
During a review meeting with the officials on urea and rain impact, the minister said that by Saturday the state would receive 18,000 metric tonnes of urea and an additional 21,000 MT during the next week. He directed the officials that while sending urea, priority should be given to districts where the demand is high.
He also revealed that the state government has already written to the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, seeking additional urea supply in September. Meanwhile, Nageswara Rao expressed anger over the employees of his department for coming late to office.
When he reviewed the attendance of staff, some employees were found to be reporting for duty after 10.40 am. He instructed the employees to report for duty by 10.30 am or face disciplinary action.