Central officials team visits cyclone affected villages in Chittoor District

Tirupati: A seven-member bureaucrats team from Government of India visited the Nivar cyclone-affected areas in Chittoor District on Thursday. In the morning the Delhi officials team reached Tirupati and interacted with AP Disaster Management Department Principal Secretary UshaRani as well as Collector Dr N Bharat Gupta and other higher officials. In a private hotel, Principal Secretary Usha Rani explained the severity of Nivar cyclone damages which occurred in Chittoor, Prakasam, Nellore, Kadapa, Kurnool and Anantapur. Later they visited the Somala Mandal and Sadumu Mandal of Punganur constituency where the road bridges were washed away by the floodwater streams.

She presented all the details in front of them through a PowerPoint presentation. In this connection, she seeks for releasing Rs 1000 crores as immediate cyclone relief to AP state to continue relief measures at cyclone-affected mandals. Similarly, she informed that total 5,342 crores damages were assessed by the officials in five districts.

She said that Horticulture, Agriculture, electricity , irrigation sectors were severely affected. As well as at many places roads and bridges washed away by the flood stream.

In AP State 11 mortalities were registered and 3,666 houses were damaged by the Nivar Cyclone effect. And under the Prakasam, Nellore, Chittoor, Kadapa, Kurnool and Anantapur Districts 205 mandals, 2097 villages and 1,26,679 population was affected due to Nivar cyclone and AP Government had initiated total 324 cyclone relief centres in submerged villages. Principal Secretary told.

She said that crops were damaged in Agriculture sector 662179.12 hectors, in Horticulture crops 286044.56 hectors were damaged. And also as far as the poultry sector is concerned total 43,018 mortalities were registered. In addition, a total of 777.81 hectares of aqua cultivation farms were damaged.

She brought to the notice of the central office's team that Panchayat Raj Roads 5,491.51 kilometers and R&B roads 1304.85 km, electrical 33 kv 229, and 33/11 kv 500 and 11 kV 1543 feeders were damaged across the five districts.

Later, Chittoor District Collector Dr N Bharat Gupta is explaining the Nivar and Burevi cyclones affect on the district said that Punganur, Pileru, Sathyavedu, Chandragiri, Thamballapalle, GD Nellore, Palamaneru, Puthalapattu, Srikalahasti, Nagari, Chittoor, Madanapalli and Kuppam mandals were severely affected. In the district, the highest rainfall of 1395.6 mm was recorded in Punganur Mandal. During the cyclone total 6,193 farmers had lost their crops and investments and 8 mortalities took place and 1181 houses were damaged, the Collector informed.

In the cyclone-affected areas visit central government team members Praveen Vashista, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Dr K Ponnu Swamy, Joint Director Ministry of Agriculture, Sravan Kumar Sing, Regional Officer, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Srimathi Sivani Director, central electricity authority (CEA) and MothiRam Assistant Commissioner, Ministry of Rural Development, R P Dube, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries took part.