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Business News/ Politics / Policy/  Vizag struggles in Cyclone Hudhud’s aftermath
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Vizag struggles in Cyclone Hudhud’s aftermath

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces Rs1,000 crore aid for Andhra Pradesh; fears of shortages and looting rise

People stand in queues to buy petrol and diesel at a fuel station a day after cyclone Hudhud passed through Visakhapatnam. Photo: ReutersPremium
People stand in queues to buy petrol and diesel at a fuel station a day after cyclone Hudhud passed through Visakhapatnam. Photo: Reuters

Hyderabad/Visakhapatnam: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced 1,000 crore as assistance to Andhra Pradesh for relief and reconstruction efforts in the aftermath of Cyclone Hudhud.

The cyclonic storm smashed the coastline of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha on Sunday, killing 26 people, ripping apart tens of thousands of mud-and-thatch homes, flattening rice, banana and sugarcane plantations and snapping electricity lines.

In the port city of Visakhapatnam, home to two million people, residents formed long queues outside the few cash machines, petrol stations and stores that had reopened, despite a third day without electricity.

The high demand for items such as milk and drinking water prompted some traders to raise prices, sparking fears of shortages and some looting among survivors.

Television images showed mobs climbing into a government relief truck filled with food and water packets, scrambling to offload the heavy sacks, as policemen beat them with batons.

Modi, who undertook an aerial survey of north coastal Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, announced a grant of 2 lakh for the families of those killed and 50,000 for those injured in the storm.

Modi reviewed the situation with Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and said the centre will provide more funds once officials estimate of extent of loss.

The full scale of the damage caused by Sunday’s cyclone is still not known, officials said. Hundreds of uprooted trees have blocked roads and phone lines are down, making it hard to determine how many people have been affected.

The Odisha government said preliminary surveys showed about 80,000 mud-and-thatch homes have been damaged, and infrastructure such as roads, culverts and bridges need repair.

Authorities in Andhra Pradesh, where at least 22 people were killed, said agricultural losses were high as winds and rains had lashed crops. Hundreds of livestock have been killed and scores of fishing boats damaged.

Cyclone Hudhud made landfall near Visakhapatnam with gusting winds at 195 kmph. Heavy rain ravaged Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts. Hudhud has now weakened to an atmospheric depression centred about 80km south-west of Varanasi in eastern Uttar Pradesh, according to the India Meteorological Department.

The Andhra Pradesh government said around 600,000 people were provided shelter and food at 223 relief camps.

Naidu, who has been camping in Visakhapatnam for the past two days to oversee relief and restoration operations, warned of stern action against black marketers and vendors selling at high prices.

Police were stationed at milk vending points and petrol bunks to control crowds.

Naidu said there is enough petrol and diesel stock in the city to last up to 15 days, and advised people not to panic and mob petrol stations.

The magnitude of the loss is “unimaginable", Naidu said at a media briefing in Visakhapatnam after reviewing the situation with officials. The government is taking measures to supply drinking water on a priority basis, the chief minister said.

The government has restored electricity supply at three feeder lines to supply power to port and other industries, said Parakala Prabhakar, official spokesperson of Andhra Pradesh. It could take some more time to resume power due to the complete collapse of the power supply network, Prabhakar said.

South Central Railways said it suffered revenue losses of around 15.6 crore due to the cancellation of passenger and freight trains and breaches to tracks on the Visakhapatnam route. The railways said it was able to restore most train services on Tuesday by opening up the Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada routes.

National Highway 5 that connects Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam was opened to traffic on Monday.

Visakhapatnam Port Trust said it is still evaluating the damage. Heavy cranes, warehouses and buildings were damaged. The Indian Navy is helping to restart port operations, an official said on condition of anonymity. Thousands of tonnes of cargo such as urea was submersed, the official said.

“The operations at the port are still in the state of suspension," Gangavaram Port Ltd said in a statement. “The exact measure of the damage and time required to resume operations is presently being assessed."

The Armed Forces on Tuesday stepped up rescue and relief operations in cyclone ravaged areas of both states under Operation Leher. The Navy said both runways of the airfield at INS Dega, which was flooded and damaged, have been made fit for flying operations. INS Dega also doubles up as the civilian airport for Visakhapatnam.

The state government has estimated that Visakhapatnam airport alone suffered damage of 500 crore. Visakhapatnam, which is a major naval base on the east coast has suffered losses to the tune of 2000 crore, according to Naidu.

“Officers and men of the naval base at Visakhapatnam are working to get the base back to its operational status at the earliest," the Navy said in a statement.

The Navy has kept 10 ships ready to sail with relief material in addition to four that have been kept ready to sail at short notice for relief operations.

“Altogether, 140 personnel have been rescued from Visakhapatnam district and 132 from Srikakulum district," the Armed Forces said in a statement.

Along the coast, government workers continued to clear roads of scores of uprooted trees, mangled electricity poles and signboards torn from buildings by the storm, while helicopters dropped food and water packets to villages further inland.

In rural areas, inhabitants cleared up thatch and debris strewn around their damaged homes and waited for help.

In Chelekapalam village in Srikakulam district, food stall owners P. Ramanna and his wife P. Mangavani stood behind a table on the roadside, trying to prepare a curry in a pan on a stove. “Our stall was blown away. We found this table today lying a few metres away and opened our shop, but we are unable to prepare idli as there is no rice powder," said Ramanna, referring to a traditional type of rice cake.

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Published: 14 Oct 2014, 01:08 PM IST
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