Anil Kumar Yadav rubbishes Chandrababu Naidu’s claims on floods

VIJAYAWADA: Rubbishing TD’s allegations of flood mismanagement, the State Government has said that water was released as per the set norms, contrary to the claims of the opposition party.

Speaking to the media here on Saturday, minister for water resources, Anil Kumar Yadav said, “Former chief minister Chandrababu’s claim that the floods were man-made and were aimed at inundating his riverfront house in which he is residing. This is a baseless argument.”

He also stated that the water was released as per the set procedures only after the reservoirs were full and the crest gates were opened as per the standard operating procedure.

Brushing aside the criticism that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had been in the US while there were floods in the state, the minister said that a review was done from time to time and all necessary action was taken. The concerned collectors were constantly monitoring the flood situation, he said.

The minister alleged that it was Mr Naidu who had fled to Hyderabad gauging the intensity of the floods with the fear of imminent inundation of his residence. He said that they were always alert and necessary and timely steps were taken constantly.

Mr Yadav also stated that the flood gates were opened as per the set norms right from Almatti down to Srisailam. With water gushing in, Prakasam Barrage had seen water of such magnitude for the first time in the recent past, he added.

Fearing that there would be imminent inundation to the riverfront structure Mr Naidu had shifted his belongings to the first floor and took to safety by fleeing to Hyderabad.

He returned only after normalcy was restored and gave a power-point presentation in which he tried to impress that the Government had tried to flood his residence which is a baseless and irrational argument, said Mr Yadav.