IAS officers of Andhra Pradesh and Punjab donate one-day salary to flood-ravaged Kerala

IAS officers of at least two states, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh, have announced donating one-day salary for the people reeling under severe floods in Kerala, the worst since 1924. IAS Officers Association of Andhra Pradesh in a statement issued on Sunday said that it had resolved to contribute one-day salary of its members to CM’s relief fund of Kerala as a “token” of their “shared pain” with the flood-ravaged people of the state. Meanwhile, special chief secretary of Punjab and 1984 batch IAS KBS Sidhu informed in social media site, Twitter, that…

Punjab State IAS Officers Association too had resolved to contribute one-day salary for flood reliefs in Kerala.

The death toll in the state since the beginning of the monsoon on May 29 had reached 370, as on Sunday. And the floods have displaced about eight lakh people, according to reports, apart from destroying banana and paddy crops and damaging roads, buildings, railway tracks etc. Kochi airport, which got inundated, will remain shut till August 26. The Alliance Air, a subsidiary of Air India which runs smaller aircraft, will resume operation on Monday from Kochi’s naval operation. The ministry of defence has allowed civilian aircraft, Alliance Air, to operate from its defence base located in the city. Massive rains coupled with opening of 80 dams are said to have caused the flood fury of an unprecedented scale.

A number of bureaucrats across various services have been working 24x7 to rescue the flood victims in the state. According to social media reports, IAS officer Ms Sri Vidya and IPS Dr Sumana of Coorg have been doing a commendable job in handling the rescue operations in the district. 

Also, another IAS officer -- Prasanth Nair -- a former collector of Kozhikode and present deputy secretary in the union ministry of new and renewable energy, has been showered praise by a cross-section of people for helping the flood victims through Facebook groups. In fact, social media has played a key role in rescue and relief operations during the floods.