Andhra Pradesh Floods: Death Toll Climbs to 32 as Central Team Plans Visit

The death toll from the severe downpours and floods in Andhra Pradesh has risen to 32, with 45,369 people now in relief camps, officials reported on Wednesday. NTR district, which includes Vijayawada, is the hardest hit with 24 deaths. Guntur and Palnadu districts reported seven and one fatalities respectively.

Central Government's Response

An inter-ministerial team from the Central government will visit the flood-affected districts of Krishna, NTR, and Guntur on Thursday to interact with victims. The team will include KP Singh, an adviser from the National Disaster Management Authority, and Siddarth Mitra, a director at the Central Water Commission.

A new weather system is forming over the Bay of Bengal. A low-pressure area is expected to develop over west-central and northwest Bay of Bengal around September 5. The India Meteorological Department forecasts light to moderate rainfall in north coastal Andhra Pradesh from September 4 to 8 and in South Coastal Andhra Pradesh from Wednesday to Friday.

Weather Predictions

Heavy to very heavy rainfall is predicted for Eluru and Alluri Sitarama Raju districts on Thursday. East Godavari, Anakapalli, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, and Parvatipuram Manyam districts may also experience heavy rainfall at one or two places.

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu held a meeting with bankers and insurance company representatives on Wednesday. He urged them to settle insurance claims for damaged vehicles and other properties within 10 days and resolve all claims within two weeks. He also requested banks to reschedule loans for flood victims who have lost everything.

"I have convened this meeting with the intention to instill a sense of assurance to people by the government, banks and insurance companies," said Naidu in a release. He added that the state would consult with the Centre and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for maximum assistance.

Relief Efforts

Naidu visited flood-affected areas on Wednesday. Several locations in Vijayawada, such as Ajit Singh Nagar and Devi Nagar, remain waterlogged. Budameru rivulet continues to flow with floodwaters. Flood-affected residents were seen carrying water bottles and food packets along railway tracks in Vijayawada, even as some tracks were inundated.

By 8 pm on Wednesday, roads damaged by floods stretched to 3,973 km. Crops were damaged across 1.7 lakh hectares of agricultural fields and 18,631 hectares of horticultural fields. Nearly 2.35 lakh farmers have suffered losses statewide. Floodwaters discharged from Prakasam Barrage amounted to 3.16 lakh cusecs by 6 pm on Wednesday.

Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan donated Rs 5 crore for flood relief efforts. Of this amount, Rs 1 lakh each will be allocated to 400 panchayats for flood recovery activities. "I will ensure that these funds directly go into the accounts of those panchayats," Kalyan stated in an official release.

Besides Kalyan's contribution, several individuals and organisations have donated funds for flood relief. Various government officers' associations have pledged one day's salary towards relief efforts. CM Naidu has also appealed to the public for donations to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

The situation remains critical as authorities continue rescue and relief operations while monitoring weather developments closely.