Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on September 26 instructed officials to check the safety and stability of school buildings across the State, as part of Northeast monsoon preparedness.
Addressing a meeting of senior Ministers and officials in the Kalaivanar Arangam in Chennai on Monday to review the steps being taken ahead of the monsoon, Mr. Stalin advised monitoring officers to frequently visit the districts assigned to them.
"Ahead of the monsoon, do visit the districts assigned to you more than once. You should stay there and inspect school buildings and relief centres. You should specifically focus on school buildings," Mr. Stalin said.
The Chief Minister advised officials to prevent inundation of various areas in Chennai by taking precautionary steps. "This time around, I'm expecting that there would not be any inundation in key areas. At the same time, you should not be careless too."
Mr. Stalin also underlined the need for ensuring synergy between various government departments and further emphasised the need for roping in resident welfare associations while undertaking precautionary measures. He also instructed officials to complete all the ongoing works soon.
"Last time, there was some delay in receiving monsoon related alerts. This time, you should not only receive such alerts on time but also consider resources from private monsoon observers and undertake precautionary measures accordingly," Mr. Stalin stated.
The Chief Minister advised authorities to ensure supply of drinking water, electricity, medicines and other health supplies when people are moved to relief camps, and it was the official duty to ensure people's safety and well-being. A nodal officer was to be appointed for every relief camp, he said.
Mr. Stalin also underlined the need for making more people aware of the helpline numbers, contain possible outbreak of epidemics, focus on disaster management and avoiding electricity-related mishaps.
Minister for Water Resources Duraimurugan, Minister for Municipal Administration K.N. Nehru, Minister for Public Works E.V. Velu, Minister for Agriculture M.R.K. Panneerselvam, Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran, Minister for Rural Development KR. Periakaruppan, Minister for Fisheries Anitha R. Radhakrishnan, Minister for Electricity V. Senthil Balaji, Health Minister Ma. Subramanian, Minister for Finance Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Chief Secretary V. Irai Anbu and senior officials were also present.
