Naidu warns traders against black marketing

Hyderabad: Even two days after being pounded and battered by Cyclone Hudhud, the people in the affected areas in North-costal Andhra, especially in Visakahaptnam, are reeling under severe shortage of essential commodities including food grains, vegetables, water milk etc.

On the reports about the mounting sufferings of the people due to black-marketing of the commodities by greedy traders, A P Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu struck a serious warning to those trying to create artificial scarcity of essential goods.

'If anyone found exploiting the grim situation and try to make a fast buck, would severely punished,' he warned. He further said that certain elements were trying create exploiting the tragedy for selfish ends by creating artificial scarcity.

He assured that the government would come to their rescue by ensuring the required goods. The government has already taken steps to bring vegetables from five or six neighboring districts and make them available to the people at very nominal price.

Naidu further said that food would be supplied to the people taking shelter in the relief and rehabilitation camps for the next two days also.

The Vishaka Dairy and Heritage Dairy were asked to supply the required milk. Steps have also been taken to provide without any discrimination of class or status, 25 kg of rice, half kg daal, salt, pamoline oil, kerosene, sugar etc., he explained.

The CM also struck a warning to officials and other government staff of any negligence in rescue and rehabilitation works. As a matter of fact he severely reprimanded some officers who had arrived late for the review meeting.

Naidu also issued serious instructions to the official machinery and directed the oil, petrol companies to ensure that the fuel supply is restored by evening. Keeping in view the problem arising out of non-supply of electricity to the petrol bunks, he advised the citizens not to indulge in any panick buying and also to procure only limited amount of fuel.

MASSIVE RELIEF OPERATIONS

The Guntur district administration on instructions from the Chief Minister, launched a massive relief operations to help the cyclone affected people of Visakahaptnam.

It has already supplied 77,000 pulihora food packets, 50,000 liters of milk, butter-milk packets, 37,000 biscuit packets, 40 tonnes of potatoes, 8000 kg vegetables besides providing 30 drinking water tanker to Visakhapatnam.