PM promises to release Rs 1,000 cr flood relief to AP

State pegs the total rain damages at Rs 6,500 crore

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh promised to release Rs 1,000 crore to Andhra Pradesh as an immediate relief assistance towards restoration and rehabilitation activities in areas affected by the Phailin cyclone as well as the heavy rains and floods last month.

Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Pradesh Congress Committee president and state transport minister B Satyanarayana met the PM on Saturday morning to request advance release from the calamity relief fund.

They submitted a report to the Prime Minister with a preliminary estimation of Rs 6,510 crore loss, including crop losses,  inundating crops, damaging houses and roads in 16 of the 23 districts in the state. According to Kiran Kumar Reddy, the Prime Minister has agreed to their request for advance release of Rs 1,000 crore to the state.

While there was only a marginal impact, confining mostly to the district of Srikakulam bordering Odisha by the Phailin cyclone, the heavy rains that lashed the state in the third week of October had caused severe damage especially in the form of crop loss in over 800,000 hectares, according to the government reports.

According to Kiran Kumar Reddy, the Prime Minister has agreed to their request for advance release of Rs 1,000 crore to the state besides promising to send a Central team to assess the damage very soon.

Apart from this, he also promised to look into the release of Rs 1,042 crore that was promised to be released during the earlier cyclones, he said.