Team inspects damaged bridge in Nellai

TIRUNELVELI: The Central team, headed by Central Home Affairs Joint Secretary Sanjeev Kumar Jindal visited the Ockhi-hit areas in Tirunelveli district on Friday. Accompanying the team, Tamil Nadu Commissioner of Revenue Administration K Satyagopal said, “So far 22 people, including eight fishermen, have been declared dead in the State. Most of them are from Kanniyakumari and Nagapattinam”

After taking stock of the cyclone-affected areas in Kanniyakumari on Thursday, Sanjeev Kumar Jindal came to Vallioor on Friday. Thereafter, he left for Tirukurangudi town panchayat in Nanaguneri taluk to inspect the damaged bridge over Nambiyar river a few months ago. Senior IAS officers, including K Satyagopal and Agriculture Production Commissioner and Principal Secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi, accompanied him.

The team later went to Nambi Thalaivan Pattayam to evaluate a damaged house, and Eruvadi to inspect a banana farm. Finally, the team inspected a flood damaged bridge, connecting Anaikarai and Siruvalanchi villages, constructed in 2009 by the district Rural Development Agency at a cost of `26 lakh.

When asked whether action would be taken if there was a fault in construction, K Satyagopal said that the Collector had appointed a superintendent engineer to study the quality of the newly-constructed bridge. If it is found that the bridged collapsed due to faulty construction, action would be taken.

Satyagopal added, “We will meet the CM in Chennai on Friday and inspect the affected areas in Chennai, Kanchipuram and Thiruvallur districts on Saturday.”

Tirunelveli Collector Sandeep Nanduri, district revenue officer Muthuramalingam, Cheranmahadevi sub-Collector Akash, assistant Collector (training) Elam Bahavath and officials from various departments were present.