Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) on Thursday said the state has incurred losses of more than Rs 5,000 crore due to heavy rains and flash floods. Rao has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking funds of Rs 1,350 crore from the Centre to combat the situation.
According to the weather department, the state received 144% more rainfall than normal in the last two weeks with capital Hyderabad recording 404% excess rainfall than normal. CM KCR has instructed the officials concerned to take up relief measures on a war footing to the people who are facing trouble due to heavy rains and flash floods.
He said that in the submerged areas, rice, pulses and other essential commodities, food and three quilts per house should be distributed from the government side. The CM announced immediate financial assistance of Rs 5 Crore to the GHMC for the relief works under the Hyderabad city limits.
He also announced that it was decided to pay Rs 5 lakh as compensation each to the members of the deceased families. The CM said for those whose houses were destroyed, new houses would be built and for those partially damaged financial assistance would be given for the repairs.
KCR further clarified that those houses which were built on Nalas (Drains) were washed away in floodwaters and the new houses would be built on government land. Rao instructed that water should be drained out of the low-lying areas and cellars of the apartments on a war footing and power supply should be restored.
The CM was very particular that power supply should not be given where there is still water in the lowlying areas and the cellars as it would be dangerous. KCR asked Metro Water Works and Fire Services to help to drain the water out. The CM also instructed the electricity department officials to make plans to remove the high-tension cables over the houses as they may prove to be dangerous.
The CM held a high-level review meeting at Pragathi Bhavan on the situation arising due to heavy rains and floods in the State. The CM reviewed the relief and rehabilitation measures taken so far and instructed on the measures to be taken in the days to come. Even after 48 hours of the rain, the flood-like situation is still seen in many parts of Hyderabad especially the areas adjacent to lakes.
Four NDRF teams have been deployed in Hyderabad, and have evacuated more than 2,000 people in Hyderabad and Rangareddy districts to safer places. One GHMC assistant told TDG, “These are all illegal encroachments built inside the lake area. We are trying our best to evacuate the area. The people are angry with us but they don’t know the ground situation.” The body of postal employee J Sunder Raj, who had been missing since Tuesday evening due to the heavy rains in Hyderabad, was traced in Nagole lake.
Sunder Raj, who worked as a postman at the GSI Bandlaguda post office, was out delivering letters on Tuesday when he went missing. With this, the death toll in Hyderabad reached 26, while seven more people are still missing. In all over Telangana, the death toll reached 50.