Mumbai, Sep 4 (IANS): In the wake of floods following the devastating rains in parts of Marathwada and Vidarbha and the damage caused to the agriculture and public properties, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday asked the administration to immediately conduct the panchnama (ground-level assessment) and step up relief operations in these areas.

He instructed that the panchnama should be made immediately regarding all matters such as damage to crops, collapse of houses and loss of livestock saying that the administration should provide all the necessary facilities to the people temporarily displaced due to heavy rains.

The Chief Minister has also directed that the divisional commissioners, district collectors, disaster management units, relief and rehabilitation department, local municipalities, municipal corporations, village panchayats and the police administration should work in coordination to provide relief to the people affected by heavy and torrential rains and the floods.

Shinde also directed the administration to keep the disaster management control room open 24 hours for inter-departmental and agency coordination to effectively conduct relief and rehabilitation. He has asked the administration to erect good quality temporary shelters for the displaced people and immediately supply essential items such as clothes, food, clean water and medicines.

The Chief Minister has asked the administration to keep on giving updates about rains and water logging from time to time in coordination with the irrigation department and the weather bureau.

“An emergency helpline and control room should be set up immediately to help the affected people. Keeping in mind the safety of the students, the district administration should take decisions regarding schools and colleges,” he said.

According to state government sources, nearly 11.67 lakh hectares of agricultural land have been severely damaged in Marathwada due to storms and heavy rains in the last four days. Parbhani, Nanded, Dharashiv and Jalna district were hit badly as crops of cotton, soybean and turmeric were damaged.

In the Vidarbha region, Yavatmal, Buldhana and Akola districts witnessed heavy rains causing severe damage to the standing crops.