Hyderabad, October 07: With the outflow from the Srisailam reservoir diminishing, the flood threat to areas downstream of the Prakasam barrage at Vijayawada has almost gone, the State Government has declared.
The outflow from Srisailam came down to 6 lakh cusecs from 8 lakh cusecs by this evening, Revenue Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao told reporters here today.
Th e outfl ow f rom the Prakasam barrage at was about 10.6 lakh cusecs and it would come down considerably by tomorrow evening, he said after a review meeting conducted by the chief minister on the flood situation and relief activities in Kurnool, Mahaboobnagar, Krishna, Gunutur and Nalgonda districts.
Prasada Rao said that though flood water had receded considerably from a few villages in Kurnool and Mahaboobnagar districts, 573 villages in the five flood-hit district still remained inundated. Due to the breach to an embankment in Guntur district seven more villages were water-logged.
Assessment of crop loss would be undertaken tomorrow and completed in two days. Water supply was restored in Adoni, Yemmiganur, Gadwal, Narayanapet, Jaggayyapet and Repalle towns, he said.
The civil supplies department opened 40 special counters to provide rice at cost price, and allocated 20,000 tonnes of rice each to Kurnool and Mahaboobnagar districts, 90,000 tonnes to Krishna district and one lakh tonnes to Guntur district. Vegetables are being supplied from Anantapur, Kadapa and Chittor districts and onions will be supplied to Kurnool and Mahaboobnagar districts from tomorrow.
About 450 sanitary personnel, who are willing to work at night, have been deputed to Kurnool district.
The men and material needed for sanitation work in remote villages will be dispatched tomorrow.
The revenue minister said that Railway Minister Mamata Benerjee called up Chief Minister K Rosaiah to inform him that railways would transport flood relief material free of cost. President Pratibha Patil also called up the chief minister to express sympathy over the tragedy that struck the State.
The flood water stagnated in Alampur town in Mahaboobnagar district would be pumped out as it was not receding by gravity, he said.
The government had spent about Rs 420 crore from the Calamity Relief Fund of the State and the collectors of the five affected districts were given a free hand to draw the required money from the State’s treasury, the revenue minister said.
–Agencies–