Andhra Pradesh   

Sonia visits flood-ravaged areas

Special Correspondent

Interacts with affected people during four-hour tour of Andhra Pradesh

VIJAYAWADA: She came, she saw and she went. The four-hour visit of Congress president Sonia Gandhi can only be described thus. No usual hoop-la preceded her visit, nor had it had any fizz. Local Congress leaders were bewildered as Ms. Gandhi never uttered a word to any of them throughout. Except for allowing lensmen to take a few snapshots from their designated enclosures, sleuths of the Special Protection Group (SPG) completely insulated her from media glare.

Television footage was distributed to news channels by Doordarshan while a few photographs were supplied by the Information Department.

Ms. Gandhi, accompanied by AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh and Union Minister of State for Health Panabaka Lakshmi, arrived at Gannavaram airport around 9.45 a.m. in a special aircraft.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, APCC president K. Keshava Rao, a few Ministers of the State Cabinet, MPs, MLAs and some select local Congress leaders welcomed her.

She saw a photo exhibition of flood-hit farm fields and human habitations at the airport. District Collector Navin Mittal made a power-point presentation on the precautions, the flood fury and its aftermath. Ms. Gandhi watched the presentation with rapt attention, according to a press note issued by the State Information Centre. The Collector mentioned that the district suffered a loss of Rs. 455 crores due to floods.

The Chief Minister told her that the total loss in Andhra Pradesh was pegged at Rs. 2,500 crores.

Later, Ms. Gandhi went to Paragadapalli, near Polavaram in West Godavari district, in a helicopter along with the Chief Minister.

She went round a photo exhibition and interacted with flood victims there.

The UPA chairperson flew to Kanchela near Kanchikacherla in Krishna district from Pragadapalli.

With the battery of security men cordoning off the remote village, none other than the inhabitants was allowed to reach there.

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