On the night of October 17, Chennai was hit by extremely heavy rain in a short span of time. Rainwater had accumulated in many areas. At that time, many of the honorable ministers appointed as in-charge ministers for Chennai during the rains did not even come to the field. But after last night’s rain, they immediately rolled up their dhotis and rushed to the ground. It is said that the Chief Minister’s anger was also one reason the honorable ministers came to the field. We went down to find out what happened.
Some senior administrators of TVK who spoke to us said, 'Starting from the evening of October 17 until midnight, it poured heavily. In Paris alone, 36 cm of rain fell.
It was precisely to ensure that the government would not get a bad name during the northeast monsoon that Chief Minister Vijay appointed 7 ministers as in-charge ministers for Chennai two months ago. The job of these 7 ministers is to oversee rainwater drainage works, take precautionary measures, and be on the ground during the rains.
Arunraj, Parthiban, Ramesh, Prabhu, and Vignesh were appointed as in-charge ministers by the Chief Minister, choosing only those honorable men who were close to him and trustworthy. However, they did not properly oversee the pre-monsoon stormwater drain works. “If ministers who don’t know the south or the north are given charge in Chennai, this is the situation,” even DMK councillors criticized the TVK ministers. The Chief Minister remained patient then as well. But when the rain poured heavily on the night of October 17, none of the in-charge ministers were in the field.
Everyone was busy in their respective constituencies and at government events. Even though the weather department had warned that heavy rain was expected from October 17 to 21, the ministers ignored it and left Chennai.
Minister Adhav Arjuna was the only one on the ground. The Chief Minister kept contacting both Adhav and the municipal commissioner, asking for rain updates. It was then that he learned no responsible ministers were out in the field and was upset. He ordered that all ministers must return to Chennai by evening as soon as day broke. Only after realizing the Chief Minister’s side was angry did the ministers become alert and rush to Chennai. By the time the Chief Minister came to inspect the Ripon Building, Arunraj and Sengottaiyan had already hurried over. The other ministers also reached Chennai by night. As the Chief Minister was leaving the Ripon Building, he reportedly said rather sternly, “Tell the ministers to stay in touch with the weather office. Depending on the rain situation, tell them to speed up the work in their respective zones.” It was only after sensing the Chief Minister’s displeasure that, last night during the Chennai rains, most ministers and MLAs were seen spinning around in the field like tops, they say.