Navy steps in to rescue flood-hit; one killed

Hyderabad, July 4 (UNI) The Navy was pressed into service today to rescue marooned villagers as one person was killed and three others went missing with the Nagavali and Vamsadhara rivers in spate in the wake of heavy discharge of water from neighbouring Orissa.

Reviewing the situation arising out of floods caused by heavy rains under the influence of the deep depression, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy released Rs two crore from the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF)to plug breaches to Thotapalli reservoir.

The Eastern Naval Command (ENC) despatched four rescue and relief teams to the flood-hit areas of Vizianagaram district and pressed into service two helicopters to reach the people of Mimmani village in Srikakulam district, a Visakhapatnam report said.

Vizinagaram District was limping back to normalcy as the inflow into Thotapalli reservoir came down to 60,000 cusecs today from 1.60 lakh cusecs yesterday, official sources said.

Crops in 40,000 acre irrigated by the Thotapally reservoir in Vizianagaram district were damaged and power supply hit in 43 villages in Srikakulam district, officials told Dr Reddy who directed them to carry out relief operations on a war footing and provide relief to the affected people.

He instructed officials to ask district collectors to enumerate the crop loss also.

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