Andhra Pradesh floods: Government to submit preliminary report on losses on September 6

The report would help the inter-ministerial team from the Central government, which visited Vijayawada, the worst affected place, to estimate the losses and destruction

People wade through waterlogged roads following heavy rains in Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh on September 5, 2024. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has stated that the State government will submit a preliminary report on losses incurred due to the floods and heavy rains to the Union government by Friday (September 6, 2024) evening. A detailed report will be submitted after a thorough assessment of the damage later, he said.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday night, Mr. Naidu said the initial report would reach the Centre by Friday evening. The report would help the inter-ministerial team from the Central government, which visited Vijayawada, the worst affected place, to estimate the losses and destruction. The Andhra Pradesh government will send a detailed report based on the preliminary report, he said, adding, “I have spoken with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as well.”

Mr. Naidu said that around 1,40,000 families have lost everything, and  nearly 7 lakh people underwent mental agony for a week.  There are about 30,000 small businesses like pushcart vendors and grocery stores who suffered losses. The State government is developing an App to assess the losses and damages, he said.

U.S. firm to study Budameru drain issue

Referring to the Budameru drain, the Chief Minister said that the State government has invited experts from Vassar Labs (a U.S.-based organisation) to study the Budameru drain problem and suggest solutions. The Vassar Labs would examine aspects such as flood water available in the catchment area, how much flood enters the city, how to control the flood waters etc., he said.

Mr. Naidu said that the Water Resources Department (WRD) officials managed to plug two breaches in the drain. It would facilitate the water to flow into the Krishna River. Another breach needs to be closed to prevent flood waters from entering the city again.  “As of today, there is 1.2 TMC of water in the city. The stagnated water in low-lying areas needs to be pumped out,” he said, adding, that the outlets must be expanded to let this water out. 

Published - September 06, 2024 09:10 am IST