Centre announces Rs 200cr aid to Andhra

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil today announced a Rs 200 crore assistance to Andhra Pradesh from the Central Relief Fund to undertake immediate relief and rehabilitation measures in the flood-affected areas.

Speaking to the media after winding up the visit to flood-affected areas along with AICC president Sonia Gandhi and Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Patil said the Centre was firmly behind the state government in the hour of distress and suffering due to unprecedented floods and assured all help in future.

Responding to the request for assistance to strengthen the river bund along the 486-km course of river Godavari, the minister asked the government to send a detailed plan which will be studied by the central agencies such as the disaster management authority before taking a concrete decision in this regard.

Earlier, the Chief Minister said the Centre had asked the state government to go ahead with the permanent measures alongside the river Godavari to avert similar situations in the future.

While the visit of Sonia Gandhi to flood-affected areas helped boost the morale of the state government, which came under attack by the opposition for ''failure in taking up adequate relief measures'', the state government officials were disappointed over the "meagre" assistance announced by the Union home minister.

Of the Rs 200 crore assistance, Rs 180 crore was due to be released in December this year from the state's quota under the Central Relief Fund.

Officials said they had expected at least Rs 300 crore assistance in view of the situation.