Project management unit to have 4 separate wings A separate mechanism has been created with headquarters in Cuddalore for monitoring and management of rehabilitation projects in cyclone ‘Thane' affected areas. K. Veera Raghava Rao, Additional Collector, took charge as Project Director (Thane Rehabilitation), in the presence of Collector Rajendra Ratnoo, on the new office premises located at Mariya Soosai Nagar on Friday. Later, Mr. Rao told reporters that the ‘project management unit' would have four separate wings for taking care of issues relating to agricultural crops, horticultural crops, agricultural engineering devices and rural development. Besides following the broad guidelines issued by the government, Mr. Rao would also act on the guidance of the Collector. He would be visiting affected areas to have first-hand knowledge of crop damage. The rehabilitation process would be implemented in three stages: on a short-term, medium-term and long-term basis. The immediate task would be to cut down all uprooted trees and clear them from farms. The government would see to it that farmers are not forced to resort to distress sale of logs. Later, seedlings and farm inputs would be supplied to farmers to raise fresh crops. Mr. Rao acknowledged that cashew groves suffered heavy damage and, therefore, it was proposed to get 25 lakh cashew seedlings from the State Horticulture Farm, the Regional Research Station and the Tamil Nadu Horticultural Producers' Cooperative Enterprises Ltd (TANHOPE). It was proposed to distribute 25 lakh cashew seedlings in a phased manner as follows: July – four lakh, August – six lakh, September – nine lakh, October – two lakh, November – two lakh and December – two lakh. A total of 2,19,450 coconut seedlings and 46,000 jackfruit seedlings would also be distributed to farmers. The affected farmers would also be given 9,000 paddy kits (20 kg each) along with two 200-gram packets of bio-fertilizers and as many as 2.14 lakh pulse kits (eight kg each) along with two 200-gram packets of bio-fertilizers for the purpose of intercropping. Pit formation would be done in June and July and planting taken up during August, September and October. Mr. Ratnoo said beneficiaries of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme had been engaged for cutting down and removing the fallen trees. This had provided employment to villagers. A total of 100 severely-affected panchayats had been identified and were divided into 10 groups. Among the 10 panchayats, one had been selected as nodal local body to undergo training on safe handling of 445 high-powered saws being supplied free of cost by the government to the farmers. That panchayat, in turn, would impart training to the other nine panchayats. Mr. Ratnoo said that as cashew groves were grown in water-deficit or rain-fed areas, it had been proposed to construct check-dams across the Gedilam to recharge groundwater level and later to sink a borewell for every 25 acres with 50 per cent subsidy. Rehabilitation measures would continue for five years until the farmers reap the harvest from the fresh crops.