VIJAYAWADA: The inter-ministerial Central team, which visited the flood-affected areas in Kadapa, Chittoor, and Nellore districts, was all praise for the State government and the officials for effectively handling the rescue and relief operations.
The team headed by Kunal Satyarthi, advisor (NDMA) to the Ministry of Home Affairs, met Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday after their three-day visit to the flood-affected areas for assessing the losses and damages due to the deluge. Satyarthi said under the leadership of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, emergency services were restored at a very quick pace, more so power connectivity, which normally is not restored in such a short time.
Speaking on the occasion, Satyarthi said Kadapa district suffered massive damage. “The region we visited is not a flood-prone area but witnesses frequent floods. Rivers, canals, tanks and other water bodies do not have capacity to drain the floods to such an extent,” he said.
The expert observed that such phenomena are being witnessed all over the world. “The damage was more in Kadapa district, particularly in the region where the Annamayya project had a breach. Parts of Chittoor and Nellore districts also suffered. In Kadapa, basic infrastructure was severely affected and standing crops were submerged. Drinking water system with Annamayya project as sources was damaged. Irrigation system and road connectivity was cut off,” he explained. He said despite such devastation, the officials restored normalcy at the earliest.
According to him, 40 per cent of roads and buildings were damaged, 32 per cent of agriculture and allied sectors and 16 per cent of irrigation schemes suffered damages. He assured that Centre would extend all possible help to the State.The Chief Minister described the disaster as heart rending and thanked the Central team for visiting those areas to assess the damage. He urged the Centre to be magnanimous on humanitarian grounds.
He said that there is no change in the details of damage submitted by the government as there is a well equipped efficient system in place to assess the damage. He said every farmer was provided with a receipt after registering details through e-Crop and there are definite details of the corps damaged.
Later, in a review meeting with collectors of flood-affected districts and senior officials, the CM took stock of the situation in those areas. He enquired about the impact of the fresh bout of rains and directed them to closely monitor reservoirs, tanks and ponds and focus on reviving the drinking water supply network.
CM hits at TDP chief
The CM criticised TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu for playing “dirty politics” on the floods. He said like never before, flood relief and restoration works were taken up in just one week. Earlier, it used to take months for the victims to get compensation. There used to be no compensation for missing people, but the State government is providing them essential commodities along with Rs 2,000.