Six persons were killed and crops spread over one lakh hectares suffered damage due to unseasonal rains and hailstorms in Andhra Pradesh. The heavy rains, accompanied by strong winds, also damaged houses and brought down power cables across the state.
Following instructions from Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who is on a visit to China, Chief Secretary I Y R Krishna Rao, along with Agriculture Minister Prathipati Pulla Rao, held a meeting with the officials of the disaster management, horticulture, agriculture and energy departments to review the damage from the rains, and also interacted via a video conference with the District Collectors on Monday.
The Chief Secretary issued instructions to the Collectors concerned to pay ex-gratia immediately in respect of all death cases. He said that the norms of Hudhud may be applied to this calamity, too.
As per initial reports, six deaths have been reported so far, in the Kurnool, Kadapa and Ananthapuram districts (two in each district). The standing crops which would have been harvested in the month of April have also been flattened by the rain and strong winds.
The Chief Secretary issued instructions to the District Collectors to send preliminary reports on the damages that occurred due to the rains for taking immediate action to extend relief to the farmers and ex-gratia to the deceased. The agriculture department officials have been asked to deploy teams and enumerate crop damage and loss of livestock, and furnish proposals for financial assistance to affected farmers. (INN)