With heavy rain being forecast in various parts of Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Tuesday deputed a few Ministers to oversee precautionary measures and relief operations in Cuddalore, Mayiladuthurai and Nagapattinam districts.
Senior IAS officers, who have been appointed monitoring officers, have been directed to co-ordinate relief operations in 13 districts — Chengalpattu, Cuddalore, Dindigul, Madurai, Mayiladuthurai, Nagapattinam, Pudukkottai, Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga, Theni, Tiruvallur, Tiruvarur and Villupuram.
Mr. Stalin on Tuesday visited the State Emergency Operations Centre in the Ezhilagam complex in Chennai and reviewed the precautionary measures being taken. He was accompanied by Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran, Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena and senior officials.
The Chief Minister also virtually interacted with Cuddalore Collector A. Arun Thamburaj and Nagapattinam Collector Johny Tom Varghese and discussed the precautionary measures taken in their districts.
The government had on November 13 instructed the Collectors of 27 districts to adhere to the Standard Operating Procedures to handle disasters and take adequate preparedness measures to tackle any exigency. The instructions were issued to the Collectors of Ramanathapuram, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Mayiladuthurai, Cuddalore, Kanniyakumari, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Sivaganga, Perambalur, Ariyalur, Villupuram, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Tirupattur, Vellore, Ranipet, Tiruvallur, Chennai, Tiruvannamalai, Kallakurichi, Tiruchi, Virudhunagar, Madurai and Dindigul.
A total of 4,967 relief camps have been kept ready in schools, colleges, community halls and wedding halls across Tamil Nadu. Besides, 121 multi-purpose halls have been kept ready in coastal districts to accommodate 1.13 lakh people, an official release said. Members of the public can use the 1070 and 1077 helplines in case of emergency. Complaints can be sent to 9445869848 through WhatsApp, it added.
