YSRCP govt blamed for Budameru floods

Guntur : Water resources minister Nimmala Rama Naidu blamed the YSRCP government for Budameru flash floods in Vijayawada which rendered lakhs of families homeless and caused loss of property worth several crores in early September.

Responding to the questions raised by the YSRCP members in Legislative Council on Wednesday, he criticised the previous government for failing to complete the Budameru diversion canal works during its tenure of five years. He said that the release of 15,000 cusecs of flood water caused breaches to Budameru bunds.

The minister recalled that the TDP government on November 19, 2014, called for tenders to complete the Budameru diversion channel deepening and widening at a cost of Rs 464 crore. It was intended to check the Budameru floods and even 80 per cent of the work was completed. However, the YSRCP government failed to complete the rest of 20 per cent of the works.

The minister pointed out that due to Budameru flash floods about five to six lakh people were rendered homeless. The government has conducted a meeting with the officials of the revenue, irrigation and the municipal corporation to start ‘Operation Budameru’ to check floods in future. About 6,000 families encroached upon Budameru bunds and built houses and there was a need to relocate them. The government took up repairs to the Budameru breaches within three days, he stated.

YSRCP MLCs raised the name of a newspaper proprietor who had an active hydel power plant on it. Heated exchanges took place in the House on the issue. The TDP and the YSRCP blamed each other for Budameru floods.

Rama Naidu said when Annamayya project was washed away due to flash floods claiming lives of 42 people, the then chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy did not come out of Tadepalli palace.

Responding to the YSRCP MLCs’ criticism, minister for home and disaster management Vangalapudi Anitha said Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu stayed 11 days in the collectorate in Vijayawada city and supervised the rehabilitation works.

She said, “Chandrababu Naidu walked in the floodwater at the age of 70 years and supervised food packets, drinking water bottles distribution and interacted with flood victims, solved their problems and consoled the victims.”

She pointed out that the government distributed 1.15 crore food packets, candles, and match boxes to the flood victims. The government had also paid compensation to the flood victims.