The police organised flood preparedness meetings in tribal hamlets which are prone to inundation, and alerted the villagers to take precautions to prevent loss of human and animal lives.
Following the directions of Superintendent of Police K. Naranyan Naik, police drafted a plan of action to shift the villagers to rehabilitation homes, provide food, medicines and alert them on the flood level from time to time.
Polavaram Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) M. Venkateswara Rao, CI Naveen Murthy and SI R. Srinu visited Madhapuram village on Saturday. They put up banners at Kothur and Vadapalli hamlets, located on the Godavari bund in the mandal.
The DSP alerted the locals over the rising flood level as heavy rains were predicted in the upstream, and urged them to cooperate with the Revenue, Police, Panchayat Raj, Medical and Health and Tribal Welfare department officials in evacuating the villages, if necessary.
‘Collect details’
“Instructions have been given to the police to be alert and collect the details of the pregnant women, elderly, children and patients in each family. The local officials will caution the residents on the flood level from the flood control room,” Mr. Naik said.
Mr. Rao said that banners had been put up in the villages to alert about flood situation and preparedness meetings were being conducted in all inundation hamlets.
“Based on the previous water levels in Godavari and the flood situation in the bund villages in the last few years, action plan has been prepared. As of now, the flood situation is not at danger level and instructions have been to coordinate with their counterparts in the upstream areas,” Mr. Naik told The Hindu.
Transportation
The police officials were asked to coordinate with other department personnel in the Agency area in maintaining better supply of medicines, groceries, power supply and rescue the villagers in emergency, he said.
Police with the help of Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Anganwadi and the Medical and Health department personnel will shift the pregnant women to the nearby rehabilitation centres as a precautionary measure, Mr. Naik added.