HYDERABAD: Apprising Union Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the huge losses Telangana suffered due to the recent rains and resultant floods, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday sought immediate relief to the state.
At a meeting with Chouhan at the Secretariat, the CM urged the Centre to provide funds to Telangana on par with neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. Revanth told the Union minister that as per preliminary estimates, the state incurred a loss of around Rs 5,438 crore.
Revanth informed Chouhan that Khammam and Mahbubnagar districts in Telangana, which border Andhra Pradesh also suffered huge damages like the neighbouring state. He said that all the departments were busy in collecting details of the actual damages at the field level. “The value of the total damages may increase further in the comprehensive report,” he told Chouhan.
The CM told Chouhan that Khammam, Mahbubnagar, Suryapet and other districts received a maximum rainfall of 40 cm in a single day. He said that though the government took precautionary measures and averted human loss, roads and irrigation structures and crops were damaged in the rains. Revanth made a PowerPoint presentation to Chouhan and also arranged a photo exhibition on state floods at the Secretariat.
The CM said that highways, houses and bridges were damaged at many places. Photographs of hanging railway tracks and embankments washed away in the flood-hit Mahabubabad district figured in the PPT.
Revanth said that the state government disbursed Rs 10,000 as an immediate relief to every flood-affected family.
The chief minister appealed to the Centre to provide immediate assistance for temporary repairs of breached lakes, damaged roads, dams and bridges.
Relax rules, Centre urged
Revanth also requested Chouhan to bring some relaxations in the existing rules in the release of disaster funds to the states.
Until 2021, states were entitled to spend the NDRF funds after the 50% of SDRF funds are utilised. The new guidelines allow states to utilise the NDRF funds only after spending 100% of the SDRF funds.
Officials briefed the Union Minister that at least Rs 60 crore was required for the immediate repairs to damaged ponds. As per the present fixed rates, the state would not get more than Rs 4 crore.
Chouhan made it clear that there was no place for politics and parties when the affected people in the natural calamity were provided relief and rehabilitation by the Centre in the rain-hit areas.
Interacted with farmers
Chouhan, who is on a two-day tour to Telangana and AP, interacted with farmers in Khammam and enquired about their losses.
“PM Modi has sent me to understand your pain, you have lost your crops. Modi will not let you lose your life. I am from a farmer’s family, I can feel the pain of my farmer brother, but this pain, these tears will not remain, we will provide appropriate compensation,” Chouhan told the farmer.
“We will ask banks not to recover loans from farmers. We will not let there be a shortage of fertilisers and seeds for the next crop,” he said .
Chouhan said that the Union government would provide full support to farmers.
An official from PIB said that Chouhan assured immediate assistance of Rs 3,448 crore from SDRF, which is already with the state and includes the Centre’s share. However, it is unclear whether Chouhan spoke about SDRF of both Telangana and AP or not.