AP to Take Up Survey on Canals to Modernise Them

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government would take up a comprehensive survey on canals in order to strengthen and modernise them. Municipal administration minister P Narayana stated here on Tuesday that floods to Krishna river and the Budameru canal suffering breaches caused inundation to several parts of Vijayawada city following the heavy rainfall. The intensity of the rain was the highest in the last 200 years.

“We are going to take up a survey on the canals based on advice from chief minister Chandrababu Naidu,” he told the media. He stated water resources officials would send the outline for the survey. Encroachments along the canals would be removed as per law. A new legislation would be made, if needed.

As for the ongoing relief operations in the flood-hit areas, the minister said that teams of officials were taking up enumeration on the extent of damage or loss to crops and to other assets. “If needed, we would deploy more teams to expedite the enumeration.”

“If there is no one at some homes, the enumeration team would revisit such spots and collect details during the survey,” he said. He said power supply was restored to all affected areas in the city.

The minister said that 32 out of 62 divisions in the city were flooded. Some divisions were flooded with water rising up to 10 feet, eight feet, six feet or four feet while the Krishna river had floods up to 11.43 lakh cusecs of water. The Budameru canal suffered breaches at three places leading to the inundation of several areas in the city.

Narayana announced that 10,000 sanitation workers including 7,500 who came from other areas worked day and night to clean up the flooded areas while three to 12 lakh food packets per day, based on need, were supplied. Water bottles in the range of 30 lahks, 26 lahks, 20 lahks and 10 lahks per day were given to different affected areas as per requirement. Biscuit packs of 12 lahks, 10 lahks, eight lahks or three lahks per locality were issued.