Home Minister P Chidambaram to inspect cyclone Thane ravaged villages in Puducherry tomorrow

PUDUCHERRY: Union Home Minister P Chidambaram will inspect cyclone Thane ravaged villages in the union territory of Puducherry and Cuddalore district in Tamil Nadu tomorrow.

Speaking to reporters here after holding a review meeting, Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy said Chidambaram would proceed to affected areas in the union territory immediately on arrival here at 11 AM, then leave for Cuddalore and return in the evening before proceeding to Chennai en route to Delhi.

Rangasamy said he would present a detailed report to him on the damage, estimated at around Rs 2,000 crore and apprise him of the death toll, which has now risen by one to eight.

He said Chidambaram's visit was in response to his request yesterday to come here and inspect the damage for himself.

Rangasamy also said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had contacted him earlier today, enquired about the situation and informed him that a Central team would soon visit Puducherry for an assessement.

He said Singh also assured him that the Centre would extend financial aid to Puducherry to tackle the situation.