Hyderabad, July 21 (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has kept the entire state administration on alert in view of the heavy rains lashing the state.

He directed all the district Collectors on Monday to be alert and take necessary precautions to ensure that people do not face problems due to floods and other rain-related incidents.

He also asked all the other district authorities to be available round the clock during July-August.

During a video conference with the Collectors, the Chief Minister directed them to get updates about the rain forecast from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and alert the local authorities, farmers and people in villages three hours in advance.

The Chief Minister observed that the state has recorded 21 per cent deficit rainfall since June and that the recent heavy rains will be a relief.

The Chief Minister reviewed the situation due to heavy rains, supply of urea and fertilisers to the farmers, traffic management in Hyderabad during heavy rains, deployment of medical teams to prevent seasonal fevers and distribution of new ration cards.

As rains are causing huge traffic jams in Greater Hyderabad, CM Revanth Reddy alerted all departments to work efficiently to solve traffic problems and take up rescue operations in the rain-hit habitations at a fast pace.

The officials briefed him that the GHMC, along with 150 teams under the police, traffic departments, NDRF, SDRF and HYDRAA, are already deployed to deal with the situations arising in the flooded areas.

The Chief Minister instructed the officials to be directly available at the field level, review the situation from time to time. The Collectors are responsible for ensuring that all departments work in coordination with the Police Commissioners and senior officers of all departments in Hyderabad to ensure the safety of people. The CM emphasised that the coordination should be done from the Command Control Room in accordance with the IMD forecast.

The authorities were also instructed to take precautions to prevent any loss of life and property due to rains in the districts. In the wake of reports of deaths due to lightning strikes in some places, the CM ordered the officials to collect details to provide assistance to the bereaved families.

CM Revanth Reddy also reviewed the preparedness of the Medical and Health Department to prevent the spread of seasonal fevers like Dengue, and other communicable diseases during the monsoon. Focus should be on the protection of the health of people living in Tribal areas, ITDA agencies and remote habitations. The Medical and health authorities were instructed to deploy doctors in all PHCs and government hospitals.

The veterinary department should be alert to save the livestock. The government will also release an emergency fund of Rs 1 crore to each district.

In a bid to strengthen vigilance during heavy rains, the CM instructed the Collectors to conduct surprise inspections of the PHCs and the district hospitals and field visits every morning.

State Chief Secretary was ordered to submit a report on the activities of the Collectors to the government every day. The CM warned of strict action if the authorities ignore their responsibilities and are careless in the discharge of their duties during the emergency.

–IANS

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