Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao has asked senior power officials to ensure that there is no interruption in power supply due to heavy rains and wants them to start hydel power generation wherever possible as irrigation projects were facing heavy floods. .
Reviewing the flood and rain situation in the state with senior officials, Mr Rao also asked them to see that they maintain the coal stock for a month to meet the power generation at thermal stations.
The officials informed him about the hurdles faced in the construction of Devdula lift-irrigation project due to rain. In response, Mr. Rao instructed Chief Engineer Irrigation C. Muralidhar to take steps to draw water from the project.
They told him that out of 2,300 electric poles that fell in the rain, 1,600 have been re-erected. Wherever the power supply was disrupted, alternative arrangements were made to maintain the supply.
Shri Rao ordered immediate steps to be taken to mitigate the hardships faced by the public due to overflow of water from springs, reservoirs and rivers. All departments should make coordinated efforts to minimize the loss of life and property. He assessed the inflow and outflow of major irrigation projects like Sriramsagar and inquired about the steps taken to shift the people living in the submerged areas to safer places.
He called on Endowments Minister A. Indrakaran Reddy over phone to set up a camp near the Kaddam project to monitor relief for the people of the 12 villages vacated by floods in the reservoir. Arvind Kumar, Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration, has been asked to oversee relief operations in Nirmal and other submerged areas along the Godavari river.
Transport Minister P. Ajay Kumar was also asked to set up camp at Bhadrachalam and look after relief for people evacuated from nearby villages due to rising water level in Godavari.
Principal Finance Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao was asked to release the money immediately for all relief measures. Ministers and MLAs have been asked to remain in their respective constituencies and districts respectively till the situation improves.