VIJAYAWADA: With ground reports indicating that providing food to the Budameru flood victims by boats is proving difficult in many submerged areas in the city, the official machinery is now delivering food packets and water bottles to them by helicopters and drones.
Meanwhile, as the floodwater has started receding, the people living adjacent to the Budameru rivulet have begun returning to their homes. However, upon finding their belongings soaked and floating in the flood water, many were forced to return to rehabilitation centres or seek refuge with their relatives.
Sharing her ordeal with TNIE, Vetagiri Mounika, a private teacher from Vambay Colony, said, “All the apartments in our area have been submerged up to the first floor due to the Budameru floods. We are facing hardship due to lack of food and the inability to cook. To get the government aid, residents should wade through water for nearly 5 km to reach the Singh Nagar bridge or the main road.”
Agriculture Minister K Atchannaidu who visited the flood-affected areas of Ajit Singh Nagar, including the 45th, 46th and 47th Divisions, directed the officials to take immediate measures to provide food to the flood victims, besides evacuating the people from submerged areas.
Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha distributed food packets and water bottles to the residents of flood-hit Lalitha Nagar in Bhavanipuram by travelling on a tractor.
Concerns have been raised over exploitation in flood-affected areas
Concerns have been raised over exploitation in flood-affected areas like Singh Nagar, where some traders and private boat operators are said to be profiting from the crisis. N Sudhir from YSR Colony told TNIE that traders are targeting suburban colonies neglected by the official machinery, but many residents cannot afford the inflated prices for bare essentials.
In Jakkampudi and Shabad Nagar, around 2,000 families have been stranded without food or water for three days.
Speaking to TNIE, Rallapalli Chandra Shekhar of Jakkampudi, pleaded for supply of drinking water and milk to children.
A family of Tothvari Street 7, Pipula Road of Singh Nagar, reported that a pregnant woman urgently needed transportation to hospital due to labour pains. Additionally, a newborn baby in a flood-affected apartment near Pamula Kaluva in Jakkampudi Road had been without milk or drinking water for a few days, further exacerbating the flood victims’ plight.
Political leaders visits disrupt the relief operations in affected areas
Relief operations in the affected areas are being disrupted by visits of political leaders. The lack of coordination between the officials and staff at the field level is also hindering the relief operations, some people complained.
The Budameru flood has now surrounded villages like Nidamanur, Gudavalli, Kesarapalli and Savari Gudem in Krishna district. The breach of Budameru at Gudavalli has led to floodwater entering residential areas, besides submerging the paddy crop.