Floods: No fresh death in AP

PM to make aerial survey of flood-hit regions tomorrow

A Met official in Visakhapatnam told media on Wednesday that there was no scope for any more depressions in the next four-five days and that rain had completely stopped across the State. However, even as the two worst districts of Kurnool and Mahbubnagar are limping back to normalcy, over two dozen villages in the Krishna and Guntur districts of Andhra Pradesh continue to face flood fury as Repalle town in Guntur district was inundated following a breach in the Krishna right bank canal.

“We cannot say that the problem is over although water is receding. We have to be alert today also,” said Rajiv Sharma, Special Officer for Flood Relief works, in Vijayawada. Several villages in Ibrahimpatnam, Jaggaiahpet and Chandarlapadu mandals in Krishna district and some localities in Vijayawada city continue to remain in water.

Meanwhile, it was confirmed here officially that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will make an aerial survey of the devastation on October 9. He will fly to Vijayawada and then see a pictorial presentation of the devastated areas at Begumpet airport here. He will leave for Karnataka in the evening and then return to Delhi the same day.

Revenue Minister D Prasada Rao told a press conference on Wednesday evening that relief and sanitation drive had been intensified in Kurnool and Mehaboobnagar districts while the highway connecting Hyderabad and Kurnool was restored. There were no fresh deaths with the death toll remaining at 63, he said. Giving an assessment of the loss to various sectors, Rao said standing crops over 2.41 lakh acres were destroyed while 1,700 habitations had been affected in the floods.

Worst hit

One of the most affected was the power sector that incurred a loss of Rs 236 crore with the destruction of power plants, substations, feeders, towers and power lines.