TS Govt. Should Give Rs 5000 Cr For Flood Relief: Uttam

. TPCC Core Committee meeting at Pragnapur discusses key issues

. Congress demands Rs. 25 lakh ex-gratia, Rs. 5 lakh for fully damaged houses

. TPCC forms 10-member Sub-Committee on KLIS issue

Hyderabad, October 21 (Maxim News): Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President & MP Capt. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Wednesday said that the State Government should increase the amount for flood relief from Rs. 500 to Rs. 5,000 Crore.

Uttam Kumar Reddy informed that the TPCC Core Committee, which met at Pragnapur in Gajwel constituency on Tuesday night, held detailed discussions on various issues including the flood situation in Telangana, agriculture and Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme. The meeting was attended by AICC Incharge Manickam Tagore, CLP leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and other senior leaders. After having detailed discussions, the Core Committee passed several unanimous resolutions.

“A number of issues such as huge misery and loss of life, property and agricultural crops and the inadequate response of state and central governments were discussed. The Core Committee unanimously passed resolutions on various issues,” Uttam Kumar Reddy informed.

It was decided to write to the Prime Minister and demand that the present situation in Telangana state be declared as a national calamity. The Congress party condemned the incompetent and inefficient handling of the excess rains cum flood situation in Hyderabad and other parts of the state by TRS government. It also condemned the negligent attitude of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is not touring the flood affected areas of Hyderabad city or the extensive crop damage areas in rural Telangana and describes the situation akin to “Nero fiddles while Rome burns”.

The Congress party described the miserly relief announced by the state government as tantamount to insulting the rain and flood affected people of Telangana. The Congress party demanded that the amount sanctioned by the state government for flood relief be increased from Rs.500 to Rs.5000 crores; Ex-gratia of Rs.25 lakhs be given to each person who has died because of the rains and floods. For houses fully damaged in the floods, a compensation of Rs.5 lakhs be given by the state government; For partially damaged houses, an amount of Rs.2 lakhs be given and for all houses in areas where flood water has entered the houses, a compensatory amount of Rs.50,000 be given.

Further, Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the state government must immediately take up enumeration of crop damage due to rains / floods. “For all farmers where extensive crop damage has occurred, an amount of Rs.20,000 per acre be given immediately by the state government to all affected farmers including tenant farmers. Crop damaged cotton, paddy and maize be purchased with relaxed conditions and higher moisture content be accepted. Due to the heavy rains whatever the crop left that damaged crop to be purchased by government agencies by relaxing the quality norms such as shading of color, moisturize percentage and damaged cotton,” he demanded.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the Congress party leaders and cadres have responded immediately to the flood situation. It was resolved during the Core Committee meeting that all Congress cadres be continuously and actively and visibly involved in providing relief to the flood affected in Hyderabad and rural areas of Telangana. AICC Secretary Madhu Yashki Goud will oversee the relief measures on behalf of the Congress Party.

On the agriculture issues, it has been pointed out during the Core Committee meeting, that the Chief Minister had directed finer varieties of paddy be cultivated by paddy farmers of Telangana. While the thicker (doddu in Telugu) varieties of paddy were yielding 30 quintals per acre, the finer (sanna in Telugu) varieties of paddy were yielding 20 quintals per acre. “Since the farmers are cultivating finer varieties of paddy on the specific directions of the Chief Minister, the paddy farmers are losing Rs.10,000 per acre because of lower yield. The Congress party demands that the finer varieties of paddy be purchased by the government at Rs.2500 per quintal,” the Committee demanded in a resolution.

The Congress party severely condemned the statement of CM KCR that the government would not purchase maize at MSP of Rs.1850. “Today the maize farmers in Telangana is in severe distress because he is only able to sell maize at Rs.1000 per quintal. The Congress party demands that the state government purchase maize at MSP of Rs.1850 by MARKFED (as done by earlier Congress governments) and the central government should purchase through MAFED,” he said.

The Congress party also condemned the negligent and unscientific approach of the TRS government which has led to the collapse of the Kalwakurthy lift irrigation scheme in Mahabubnagar district. This has led to a loss of thousands of crores to the public exchequer and loss of irrigation water to 3.2 lakh acres of parched lands in Mahabubnagar district.

The Congress party had called for a Mahabubnagar bandh on 21st October to protest against the TRS government’s negligent attitude leading to the damage to the Kalwakurthy lift irrigation scheme. A PCC Sub-Committee has been formed as below to look at all aspects of Kalwakurthy lift irrigation scheme and recommend future course of action. The Sub-Committee comprises CLP leader Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, MP & Working President A. Revanth Reddy, MLC T. Jeevan Reddy, MLA D. Sridhar Babu, former Irrigation Ministers Ponnala Lakshmaiah and P. Sudarshan Reddy, AICC Secretaries Dr. G. Chinna Reddy, S.A. Sampath Kumar and Ch. Vamshichand Reddy and former MP Dr. Mallu Ravi. (Maxim News)