Flood management helps Rosaiah tide over odds

The worst flood in Andhra Pradesh, which left a trail of death and destruction, has dampened the campaign to make Jaganmohan Reddy the chief minister and helped interim CM K Rosaiah to consolidate his position.

The worst flood in Andhra Pradesh, which left a trail of death and destruction, has dampened the campaign to make Jaganmohan Reddy the chief minister and helped interim CM K Rosaiah to consolidate his position.

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With his rich administrative and political experience behind him, Rosaiah's handling of the crisis won the acclaim of Congress leadership.

Rosaiah had a distinct advantage -- he enjoys a good rapport with all senior bureaucrats, unlike his predecessor YS Rajasekhara Reddy, which helped him implement the disaster management plan efficiently.

Bureaucratic support helped him in mitigating the damage to a significant extent, particularly in Krishna, Guntur and Nalgonda districts which faced a greater threat than the worst-hit Mahbubnagar and Kurnool districts.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, who conducted an aerial survey of the flood-hit districts, praised the chief minister over disaster management, sending a message to the party rank and file that Rosaiah would continue to hold fort for a longer period.

The natural calamity also pushed the pro-Jagan lobby into a situation, where it could not press the demand for elevating their leader at a time when the state was facing the worst disaster.