T'gana: Ministers visit rain hit areas of Warangal: Godavari river water level eases

A team of Telangana Ministers, including Municipal Administration Minister K T Rama Rao visited flood-hit areas in Warangal on Tuesday, even as there was a dip in water levels in the Godavari river at the temple town of Bhadrachalam.

A team of Telangana Ministers, including Municipal Administration Minister K T Rama Rao visited flood-hit areas in Warangal on Tuesday, even as there was a dip in water levels in the Godavari river at the temple town of Bhadrachalam. Municipal Administration minister K T Rama Rao, the working president of the ruling TRS, who headed the team, told reporters that Rs 25 crore would be allotted to repair damaged infrastucture in Warangal.

Rao, health minister Eatala Rajender and some of their cabinet colleagues had reached Warangal on Tuesday morning on a directive from Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and visted flood hit areas. Rao said a special month long drive would be conducted in Warangal to remove all encroachments on drains in the city.

The Minister appointed a committee under the Warangal Urban Collector to identify encroachments on floodwater, drainage and sewerage canals and remove them, an official release said. Rama Rao, who is the Chief Minister's son, said Rs 25 crore would be allotted to restore damaged roads and other infrastructure and that more funds would be released, if needed, after estimates of the damage were made.

Rao said people had told the team during their tour of the affected areas that enroachments on drains were the reason for flood waters not being drained, resulting in roads and residential areas being inundated. "Whatever the people said is very true. There are several illegal encroachments of the drains in the city. They have to be removed immediately, the release quoted Rao as saying.

The minister directed officials concerned to remove all encroachments within a month, it said Meanwhile, the water level in the Godavari river at Bhadrachalam (in Bhadradri-Kothagudem district) at 7 PM on Tuesday went down from the danger mark of 53 feet to 51.90 feet, official sources said. On Tuesday, Adilabad received 16 mm of rainfall, followed by Mahabubnagar (15 mm), according to official data.

The Met Department, in its weather forecast for Telangana, said heavy rain was very to occur at isolated places in the districts of Adilabad, Warangal Urban and Rural and others on August 19.