CM Edappadi K Palaniswami calls for naming Ockhi as a disaster

Chennai: With Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Kanyakumari district that was devastated by Cyclone Ockhi that hit the coast early this month, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Sunday instructed officials to prepare a sector-wise dossier on the wide-spread damage to seek Central assistance for relief and rehabilitation works.

At a meeting attended by Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, ministers and officials of the state government, a team led by Commissioner of Revenue Administration K Satyagopal briefed the chief minister and others on the relief measures taken up so far and the assistance to be sought from the Centre for various works

The Tamil Nadu Government has already knocked at the doors of the Union Government seeking generous assistance for restoring damaged infrastructure in the district. Palaniswami had already spoken to PM Modi over phone seeking assistance and had also deputed Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai to meet Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in this regard.

Meeting resolves to seek assistance from National diaster relief fund for Kumari

Palaniswami has also demanded that Cyclone Ockhi be declared as "national calamity" and Centre disburse funds immediately for rehabilitation work in the district. On Sunday, Palaniswami told the meeting that he would reiterate the demand with Modi when he meets him in Kanyakumari on Tuesday.

Modi will visit the worst hit Kanniyakumari district on Tuesday after flying in from New Delhi. The meeting also resolved to seek assistance from the National Disaster Relief Fund towards additional funding requirements to meet the relief works in the southern Tamil Nadu districts of Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and Tuticorin, affected by the cyclone last month, an official release here said. An official release said restoration works included repair and refurbishment in respect of categories including fallen electric poles, damaged government buildings, national and state highways and bunds of water bodies.

"A memorandum will be submitted to the Centre in this regard and the chief minister directed the officials to prepare a sector-wise dossier on the damage caused by the storm. The meeting also decided to urge the Centre to grant a special financial assistance for setting up an integrated fishing harbour in Kanyakumari district aimed at finding a permanent solution to the fishermen there," the release said.