Chennai building collapse: Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu announces ex-gratia for Telugu victims

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday announced an ex-gratia of Rs5 lakh each to the kin of Telugu workers who were killed in a building collapse in Chennnai.

Naidu, who reviewed the building collapse incident with officials here, has asked state minister K Mrinalini to rush to the site of the accident in Chennai and supervise the rescue and relief operations, a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) release said here.

Many of victims of the tragedy are said to be natives of Vizianagaram district in Andhra Pradesh. Mrinalini, Minister for Housing, hails from the district.

Union Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju, a scion of Vizianagaram royal family, would also reach Chennai either by evening today or tomorrow morning, the release said.

A team, led by Nellore district Joint Collector Rekha Priyadarshini, already reached Chennai yesterday and was monitoring the rescue and relief operations, the release said. Nellore district borders Tamil Nadu.

Vizianagaram Collector Kantilal Dande has set up a control room for the benefit of the victims from the district.

Naidu enquired about the efforts of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to rescue those trapped under the debris. The Chief Minister has also announced an assistance of Rs50,000 for the injured persons, the release added.

The death toll in the multi-storey building collapse rose to nine today, with four more bodies being recovered from the rubble.

The building collapsed at Moulivakkam in the western suburb, about 20kms from Chennai, as rains lashed the area and several other parts of the city last evening.