Andhra CM asks for Rs.5,760 crore aid from center to tackle drought

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh on Friday sought Rs.5,760 crore assistance from the central government to tackle drought and also for relief and rehabilitation in districts affected by heavy rains.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu sought the aid during separate meetings with the central teams visiting drought and rain-hit districts.

He said his state required Rs 2,000.56 crore to tackle drought. He also informed the central team that the state suffered Rs.3,759.97 crore loss due to rains.

The chief minister requested the team to take up Andhra Pradesh as a model state to eradicate drought in the next two-three years. He suggested the team to explore a permanent solution for the states that reel under severe drought conditions.

He informed that the state government had declared 359 out of 670 mandals across the state as drought-hit.

The team was informed that over 5 lakh hectares of farmland have become uncultivable during the Kharif season.

In a separate meeting with the central team visiting the state to assess flood damages, Naidu informed them that the recent rains have caused Rs 3,759.97 crore to the state. He requested the central government to provide financial assistance to bring back normalcy in the rain-hit districts.

Explaining the extent of damage the unseasonal rains have caused in Nellore, Chittoor, and Kadapa districts, he said that the rainfall recorded was 6-11 times higher than the normal rainfall.

The chief minister also explained sector-wise losses to the central team. Agriculture incurred a loss of Rs.426.94 crore, horticulture Rs.335.27 crore, animal husbandry Rs.17.97 crore, water resources incurred a loss of Rs.818.29 crore, roads and buildings Rs.711.9 crore, electricity department Rs.35.05 crore, and Panchayati raj, municipal and urban development department Rs. 589,54 crore.

He said that over 6,507 pucca houses and 17,089 huts were damaged due to the rains.

Elaborating on the massive relief operations, the chief minister said that over 1.25 lakh people were shifted to relief camps. (IANS)

(Picture Courtesy:telugugateway.com)