Premature to praise state, much needs to be done: Kamal

In an interview with a television channel, when he was asked if after his visit to the affected regions, he believed he was quick to compliment the state government on preparedness to face Cyclone Gaja, Kamal answered in the affirmative.

He said that after his visit he was able to see that the preparedness for the cyclone was mainly centered on the idea that it could hit Chennai. While he appreciated the government trying to rectify its lapses after the inadequate response to the Chennai floods in 2015, he felt that much more should be done to help the affected Delta region. 

Kamal undertook a two-day visit to the affected areas and met with the people. His party Makkal Needhi Maiam had collected Rs 1.2 crore worth relief materials which were distributed to the people. However, Kamal felt that having seen the devastation caused by the cyclone, “much more was necessary to help people get back on track.” 

“We are not the state machinery, so we were able to mobilise only as many resources as possible. If we had taken 60 trucks worth of relief materials, after visiting the areas I felt like more than 100 trucks were necessary.”

Kamal said that the tragedy had been an eye opener as all the people, rich and poor had lost their livelihood due the destruction of coconut farms on a large scale. He estimated that rebuilding and rehabilitation could take years to help the region return to normalcy.