Administration steps up efforts to restore normalcy in flood-hit areas in Andhra Pradesh

VIJAYAWADA: Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu said that the administration has been functioning round the clock to restore normalcy in the flood-ravaged areas. He said that the govt has made all efforts to avert casualties in light of the unprecedented rainfall over the past two days.Naidu expressed anguish over the loss of nine lives in various incidents during the floods. He visited the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) command control centre on Sunday and assessed the relief measures with the ministers and senior officials. He instructed the senior officials to adopt scientific strategies to mitigate the damage in the flood-affected areas. Addressing the media, Naidu said that the state has experienced massive rainfall in the last two days, resulting in the inundation of many areas. He mentioned that the flood flow from Srisailam to Nagarjuna Sagar and Pulichintala continues at 8 lakh cusecs even on Sunday. He said that power generation at NTTPS came to a standstill due to heavy flood in Budameru. He said that the bunds below Prakasam barrage were found to be weak, and instructions have been issued to reinforce them with sandbags. He said that the crops have also suffered extensive damage due to the floods, and they would undertake an enumeration of losses once the floodwaters recede.The CM said that approximately 17,000 people were evacuated to 107 camps from the inundated areas. He said that they have directed the district collectors to forcibly relocate people in low-lying areas to relief camps to ensure their safety. He said that they have initiated several measures to safeguard both lives and assets. "Our primary objective is to protect lives. We have issued unambiguous instructions to the district collectors to prevent any casualties. We have deployed mechanized boats, manual boats, and kept two choppers on standby to assist SDRF," said Naidu.The CM said that district collectors have been told to distribute 25 kg of rice, 1 kg of dal, 1 kg of sugar, 1 kg of oil, and 1 kg of onions to all the flood victims. He mentioned that additional rations would be provided to weavers and fishermen as they would be unable to work even after the floodwaters recede. He assured that the govt would support all the flood victims until the situation normalizes. He said that they would also provide compensation to the farmers who have lost their crops. Home minister Vangalapudi Anitha, chief secretary Neerabh Kumar Prasad, CCLA Jayalakshmi, Special CS (Revenue) RP Sisodia, and Special CS (Water Resources) G Saiprasad were also present.