Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday wrote a letter to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking immediate interim financial assistance to provide relief and support recovery efforts in districts affected by Cyclone ‘Murasu’.
The Chief Minister said that Andhra Pradesh had been severely affected by two successive cyclones within a week.
Heavy rains and strong winds caused extensive damage to infrastructure, including electricity networks and roads.
He noted that while the state was recovering from the damage caused by Cyclone Arnab on October 27, Cyclone Murusu struck, leaving farmers and fishermen suffer losses twice in the same season.
He told Union Minister Shah that the state has suffered extensive damage due to successive cyclones, with preliminary estimates putting the losses caused by Cyclone ‘Murasu’ at Rs 1,919.59 crore.
He requested immediate interim financial assistance to provide relief and support recovery efforts.
The Chief Minister said that a comprehensive assessment of the damage would be undertaken after floodwaters recede and that a detailed report would be submitted to the Centre within the next 15 days.
In his letter, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu added that Cyclone ‘Murasu’ damaged crops across 1,43,122 hectares affecting 1,86,063 farmers.
“The preliminary loss in the agricultural sector was estimated at Rs 874.96 crore. Horticultural crops were damaged across 6,504.38 hectares, affecting 12,178 farmers, with losses estimated at Rs 337.10 crore.”
He also told the Union Home Minister that extensive damage had been caused in the animal husbandry, aquaculture, housing, irrigation, electricity, Panchayat Raj, education and health sectors.
The Chief Minister urged the Union Home Ministry to immediately sanction interim financial assistance to support farmers, fishermen, families whose houses had been damaged, and other affected sections, while also restoring damaged essential infrastructure and services across the state.
He emphasised that immediate assistance from the Centre would provide relief to affected people and enable the state to take necessary measures to restore normalcy.
(IANS)
