Over 62,000 people in six flood-affected districts of Andhra Pradesh have been evacuated to relief camps while the Godavari river continues to flow above danger mark at Dowleswaram barrage, officials said on Friday.
The third flood level warning remained in force at Dowleswaram and with the water level likely to rise further, the state government has asked officials in affected districts to remain alert for next two days.
According to the Andhra Pradesh State Disaster ManagementA Authority (APSDMA), inflow and outflow at the barrage was 21.32 lakh cusecs on Friday night. This is likely to increase to 25 lakh cusecs on Saturday afternoon.
If the water flow increases, this is likely to impact 628 villages in 44 mandals of six districts.
The APSDMA is continuously monitoring the situation and has alerted all departments concerned.
The floods have already affected 279 villages. A total of 62,337 people have been shifted to 220 relief camps.
Ten teams each of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) were engaged in rescue and relief operations.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy held a video conference on the Godavari floods relief measures with the officials concerned after conducting an aerial survey of the flood-hit districts on Friday.
He directed the authorities to appoint a senior official for each flood-affected district to monitor the situation along with relief measures and cautioned them to stay on high alert for the next 24 hours as the water inflows are likely to increase. He instructed all the secretaries to consider requests of the district authorities and provide them on a war-footing.
The Chief Minister asked the officials to focus on evacuating people from inundated villages, and those adjacent to the banks of Godavari and shift them to relief camps. He told the officials to be prepared with materials like sandbags to put near ridges and flood walls. He directed officials to provide assistance to the families of the flood victims at the rate of Rs 2,000 each along with essential items of 25 kg rice, one kg dal, potatoes, onions, palm oil and milk in the next 48 hours.
He also asked them to use helicopters in emergency services and to take adequate measures for addressing sanitation and drinking water issues. The Chief Minister asked them to take all necessary precautionary measures to prevent damage and ensure that all types of medications, including injections for snakebites, are available at PHCs, Area Hospitals, and District Hospitals, along with generators to meet emergency services without any interruption.
He ordered that due priority be accorded to avoid disruptions in the communication system by supplying diesel to cell phone towers for uninterrupted service. He stressed that quality services have to be provided at the relief camps for the flood victims.