AP: Flood fury rages in Krishna, Guntur districts

Over two dozen villages in Krishna and Guntur districts of Andhra Pradesh continue to face flood fury as Repalle town in Guntur district was inundated following a breach in Krishna right bank canal.

"We cannot say that the problem is over, water is receding and we need to be alert today also," Rajiv Sharma, special officer for flood relief works, said in Vijayawada.

A number of villages in Ibrahimpatnam, Jaggaiahpet, Chandarlapadu mandals of Krishna district and some localities in Vijayawada city continue to remain in water.

Municipal officials said water supply would be restored in Vijayawada by noon. The present water level at Prakasam barrage was 17.9 feet and inflow and outflow of the barrage came down significantly, Sharma said.

Over 2500 people have been provided shelter in relief camps, Luv Agarwal, special officer for flood relief, said.

Relief and sanitation drive has been intensified in Kurnool and Mahboobnagar districts. The highway connecting Hyderabad and Kurnool has been restored.

State Relief Commissioner N Dinesh Kumar said there were no fresh deaths in the floods and the toll stood at 63. "Water is receding fast. Since the outflow at Prakasam Barrage is now 7.8 lakh cusecs against 10.7 lakh cusecs yesterday, there is definite improvement," he said.

Repalle and other places in Guntur district were submerged but water would recede quickly, he said.

Centre releases funds for flood-hit AP, Karnataka

Meanwhile, the Centre has released Rs 209.1 crore from the Calamity Relief Fund to flood-hit Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka to tackle the situation.

Andhra Pradesh will receive Rs 156.84 crore while Karnataka will get Rs 52.26 crore, an official release said. The funds are the second installment of the Central share of Calamity Relief Fund for the year 2009-10.

The amount is usually released in December, but the payment has been advanced in view of the grim situation in the two states. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar on Tuesday to review the flood situation in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

The Resident Commissioners of both the states, who attended the meeting appreciated the prompt and quick response by the Centre in providing logistic support for rescue and relief operations.