Ten die in Andhra Pradesh as rain batters State

Ten persons died in different incidents in Andhra Pradesh (AP) as rains lashed several parts of the State in the past two days under the influence of cyclone. While six persons lost their lives in landslides in Vijayawada, a woman, Nagaratnamma, died in a similar incident at Mangalagiri. The deceased in Vijayawada were identified as Meghana, Lakshmi, Annapurna, Lalu Purkayat and Santosh, while another person is yet to be identified.

At Uppalapadu in Guntur district, three persons — Raghavendra (teacher), Manvik and Sourish (students) — died when the car by which they were travelling washed away in flood waters.

Meanwhile, the cyclone crossed the coast at Kalingapatnam between North Andhra and South Odisha after midnight of 31 August.

According to APSDMA, heavy rain is likely under its influence in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Manyam, Alluri, Kakinada, Nandyala, Eluru, Krishna, Guntur, Bapatla and Kurnool districts in the next 24 hours.

Expressing shock over the death of six persons in Vijayawada, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the victims. He directed the officials concerned to identify the areas facing landslide threats and shift people from such areas to safer places.

Vande Bharat cancelled

The Secunderabad-bound Vande Bharat Express from Visakhapatnam has been cancelled on 1 September.  According to railway officials, the train was cancelled as the Rayanapadu station in Vijayawada division was waterlogged due to heavy rains in AP.

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This article is written by Senior Journalist Lakkoju Nagesh Babu