Telagnana CM briefs Union ministers on damage due to recent rains

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy informed Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan that the recent floods led to heavy damage of crops and public property in Telangana.

He said that according to the preliminary estimates, the loss was pegged at Rs 5,438 crore. There is scope for the loss to increase in the coming days as the estimation is still being done, he told the Union minister.

Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhand and Bandi Sanjay reached Hyderabad on Friday afternoon to assess the loss due to the recent floods.

Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers Tummala Nageswara Rao, Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, CM adviser Vem Narender Reddy were also present.

State government chief secretary Santhi Kumari, government special principal secretary Ramakrishna Rao, CMO chief secretary Seshadri were also present at the meeting.

The CM briefed the Union ministers about the damage due to floods in Khammam, Mahabubnagar, and Suryapet, where a maximum of 40 cm rain was recorded on a single day.

The government authorities showed the damage due to flood through PowerPoint Presentation and also through a photo exhibition.

He told the Union ministers that roads, houses and bridges were badly damaged due to heavy downpour in the state. He also showed them how a railway track was snapped after being hit by floods in Mahabubabad.

He told them that the state government was distributing Rs 10,000 to each of the affected families as government solatium. Standing crops in fields were damaged as fields are filled with sand silt, Revanth Reddy explained.

He urged the Centre to release immediate sufficient financial aid for the repair of breached bunds, damaged roads and bridges. He also urged the Centre to relax the rules with regard to release of disaster funds.

Earlier, the states used to be allowed the NDRF aid at a later stage, if they used 50 per cent of it. Till 2021, the same rule used to be in force. Now, the Centre is allowing the use of 100 per cent of the NDRF funds for permanent repair works, only if it can use it in one tranche. Revanth Reddy wanted the rule to be relaxed like in the earlier days.

Revanth Reddy also urged the Centre to increase the unit rate, while taking up the permanent repair works. He said that around Rs 60 crore would be necessary for repair of tanks and canals that were damaged due to the floods.

At the same time, Revanth Reddy told the Union ministers that there has been heavy damaged due to floods in Khammam and Mahabubabad, on the borders of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. He urged the Centre to view the flood damage equally in both the Telugu states and accordingly, release the funds.

To this, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that politics and parties would not come in the way when relief work is taken up during natural calamities. He said that both the Centre and state governments should together work for the aid of the affected families.