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Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is most likely to visit the cyclone and flood ravaged areas of the state on November 2, sources said.
Singh, during his tour will make an aerial survey of Ganjam, Puri, Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts, worst-hit by the Cyclone Phalin and the resultant floods, added sources.
Official figures show, around 1.2 crore people in 17 districts of the state were affected due to the twin calamities of cyclone and flood. At least 44 people have died, including 23 due to the flood.
Though the state government is yet to receive an itinerary of the high-profile visit, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has started making elaborate arrangements for the scheduled tour of party president Rajnath Singh tomorrow.
"Rajanthji will make an aerial survey of the affected areas and meet the affected people at Ganjam and Balasore district on November 1," former minister and senior BJP leader Manmohan Samal said.
Meanwhile, the 11-member inter-ministerial central team led by MHA joint secretary Rashmi Goel has conducted a field visit of the flood and cyclone affected areas of Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Balasore and Mayurbhanj districts to make an on-the-spot assessment of damages caused due to the natural calamities.
In Balasore, the team had visited Remuna and Balasore Sadar blocks and met people of different villages besides inspecting NH-60 after locals alleged that they were facing severe waterlogging because of the highway.
The team, before concluding its four-day Odisha trip will meet Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and other top officials at the secretariat this afternoon.
On October 28, the state government had submitted a supplementary memorandum to the central tram and sought additional central assistance of Rs 1,590.09 crore from the Centre to complete relief and restoration measures in view of the recent flash floods induced by low pressure rains.
The additional assistance was over and above the aid of Rs 4,242.41 crore which it had sought from the Centre few days back to undertake relief and rehabilitation work in the aftermath of the Phailin cyclonic storm and the subsequent floods. With this, the combined funding assistance sought by the state government for the cyclone and floods in the first phase as well as the second spell of floods now stands at Rs 5,832.50 crore.
