Naidu anguished over tardy relief to cyclone-hit

‘The government failed miserably in anticipating the impact of the cyclone’

TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu interacting with MRF employees at MRF factory in the course of his ‘Vastunna Mee Kosam’ in Sadasivpet in Medak. Photo: Mohd Arif

Telugu Desam president, N. Chandrababu Naidu has expressed his anguish over the tardy relief and rehabilitation measures after the Nilam cyclone hit coastal areas.

In a letter written to Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, he said the government had miserably failed to anticipate the impact of the cyclone and in gearing up field-level machinery despite early warnings by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).

He said forty-five persons had lost their lives and crops spread over 7.72 lakh hectares were damaged in 18 districts. Assessment of damages is going on at slow pace and nobody knows when this work will be completed, he said.

Mr. Naidu said heavy rains could not be prevented but the damage was more on account of inefficient handling by the government.

Loss of life and property could have been minimised if effective steps were taken in advance.

Relief measures were so slow that ex-gratia was not paid to the kin of the deceased persons even a fortnight after the cyclone, he added.

He appealed to the Chief Minister to review the situation immediately and ask the officials to complete the assessment of losses and to disburse the ex-gratia and compensation at the earliest.