Cyclone Fengal: Tamil Nadu seeks Rs 2,000 crore NDRF funds to aid restoration

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday said Cyclone Fengal had caused unprecedented devastation in the state and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to facilitate the release of Rs 2000 crore interim relief from the NDRF at onceThe sum would help the administration take up temporary restoration of damaged infrastructure and the livelihood he saidCyclone Fengal emerged as a LowPressure Area on November 23 and caused unprecedented devastation across 14 districts of Tamil Nadu Initially it brought heavy rainfall to the districts of Thanjavur Tiruvarur Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai the Chief Minister said in a letter to the Prime MinisterSubsequently districts such as Chennai Thiruvallur Kanchipuram Chengalpattu and Villupuram experienced extremely heavy rainfall Upon its landfall onDecember 1 Villupuram Kallakurichi Cuddalore and Tiruvannamalai suffered extensive damage to roads and electricity lines as wind speeds touched a very high velocity of 90 kmhIt also caused heavy inundation and damages in the interior districts of Dharmapuri Krishnagiri Ranipet Vellore and Tirupathur The deluge has caused extensive disruptions inundating vast areas displacing population and severely impacting infrastructure and livelihood Stalin saidTotally 69 lakh families and 15 crore individuals were adversely affected by this calamity Villupuram Tiruvannamalai and Kallakurichi districts in particular received rainfall equivalent to an entire seasons average more than 50 cm on a single day resulting in widespread flooding and severe damage to infrastructure and crops he pointed outResponding to it the state government mobilised all available resources to provide relief and rehabilitation to the affected population the CM saidSenior Ministers and officers have been deputed to oversee operations in the districts while 9 teams from the National Disaster Response Force NDRF and 9 teams from the State Disaster Response Force SDRF have been deployedA dedicated workforce comprising 38000 government officials and 112000 trained first responders were actively engaged in rescue and relief operationsRelief shelters were established to accommodate displaced families common kitchens have been made operational and food packets were distributed to those in need Furthermore 12648 motor pumps have been deployed to drain water from inundated areasI have personally visited some of the most affected districts today The catastrophic event has resulted in a loss of 12 human lives 2416 huts 721 houses and 963 cattle besides inundation of 211139 hectares of agricultural and horticultural land Stalin saidIn addition damage was caused to 9576 km of roads 1847 culverts and 417 tanks 1649 km of electric conductors 23664 electric poles and 997 transformers severe impairment of 1650 Panchayat buildings 4269 Anganwadi Centers 205 Primary Health Centers 5936 school buildings 381 community halls and 623 water supply schemesAn initial assessment of these damages by the state government revealed that an estimated Rs 2475 crore was required for temporary restoration effortsDespite our best efforts the scale of this disaster has overwhelmed the states resources and the state needs urgent financial assistance to manage the fallout of this natural disaster he said in the letterHe further said Given the magnitude of destruction and the urgent need for restoration I humbly request immediate release of an interim relief amounting to Rs 2000 crore from the National Disaster Response Fund NDRFAdditionally a central team could be deputed to make a comprehensive assessment of the damages so as to enable the state government to seek further financial assistance to address the unprecedented adverse impact on infrastructure agriculture and livelihoods in the affected districts he saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever