Tirunelveli is ready to face any eventuality during monsoon, assures Collector

Dist. admin. ready to transform schools into relief camps; teams formed to monitor rain-related problems. 200 student volunteers trained to mitigate rain-related woes. Local bodies instructed to remove blocks in stormwater drainage channels. 200 sandbags & casuarina poles kept ready in each taluk. Flood control rooms in Collectorate & Corp. office. NDRF team prepared action plan for flooding/landslip in hilly regions. District ready to face any eventuality during northeast monsoon.

The district administration, which has kept ready everything to transform every school into a relief camp in no time, has formed taluk-level teams to monitor and attend immediately to rain-related problems, District Collector K.P. Karthikeyan has said.

 Speaking to reporters after participating in the inauguration of ‘Health Walk Road’ here on Saturday, Dr. Karthikeyan said special arrangements had been put in place ahead of northeast monsoon based on past experiences. A Deputy Collector or Assistant Director-led team with members from police, revenue, public health, highway and fire and rescue services departments had been formed in each taluk to immediately attend to rain-related problems under its jurisdiction. These teams would coordinate with the local body representatives for reaching the problematic areas within the shortest possible time.

 Over 200 student volunteers trained in working along with the fire and rescue personnel to mitigate rain-related woes would also be deployed in the marooned areas, the Collector said.

 The local bodies have been instructed to remove blocks in the stormwater drainage channels besides constantly watching the streams flowing near the hamlets. Two-hundred sandbags and sufficient number of casuarina poles had been kept ready in each taluk to plug breaches if any in the channels or irrigation tanks. All the schools would be transformed into relief camps or temporary shelters with all basic amenities including health post, in the event of any emergency.

 To avert the sudden swelling of the Tamirabharani river, the wild streams have been diverted to the nearest irrigation tank.

 “We’ve created flood control rooms in the Collectorate and also in the Corporation’s main office to ensure better coordination between the field-level teams and the officials. We’ve deployed Village Administrative Officers in Maanjolai, Ooththu and Naalumukku areas of the Western Ghats to constantly monitor the rainfall as these areas usually experience heavy downpours during monsoons. The NDRF team, after visiting the flood-prone places, had prepared their action plan to be executed in case of flooding or landslip in the hilly regions. So, we’re fully geared-up to face any eventuality during this northeast monsoon,” Dr. Karthikeyan said.