Flood relief of Rs 6,000 to be given to all ration cardholders: Tamil Nadu government

CHENNAI: State finance minister Thangam Thennarasu on Monday said the flood relief amount of Rs 6,000 announced by the Tamil Nadu government will be provided to all ration cardholders in the four districts affected by the Michong cyclone, including Chennai.

To avail the relief, tokens will be distributed to all ration cardholders in Chennai on December 16 and the process of distributing the amount will be completed in about 10 days, he said.

On December 9, Chief Minister MK Stalin announced financial assistance of Rs 6,000 to each flood-affected family and said the amount would be given in cash. Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur were flooded due to the impact of Cyclone Michong on 3 and 4 December. Speaking to reporters here, Thennarasu said the state government averted a catastrophe by handling the situation effectively.

“Due to timely steps taken by the state government, major loss of human lives was prevented,” he claimed.

On the release of water from the Chembarambakkam dam, he said the government reduced the storage before the cyclone and later controlled the release of water from the reservoir, thereby avoiding flooding in many parts of the city.

”Normal situation has now returned in Chennai. “Due to the direct involvement of the Chief Minister, a major disaster has been averted in Chennai,” Thenarasu said.

He criticized the BJP and AIADMK for unnecessarily criticizing the state government over its handling of the floods caused by the cyclone.

Meanwhile, an official release here said relief worth Rs 17.80 crore has been distributed to the flood-affected people.

This includes 10,77,000 drinking water bottles, 3,02,165 bread packets, 13,08,847 packets of biscuits, 73.4 tonnes of milk powder, 4,35,000 kg of rice, 23,220 kg of gram and cooking materials.

Besides, 82,400 bedspreads, dresses and other essential items were also provided to them.