Soon after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday evening announced that Telangana will be placed under complete lockdown till March 31, his government also spelled out initiatives to ameliorate the suffering of the poorer sections of society. As part of this, the government has come up with a plan to give free rations and also cash benefits to the poor.

"As many as 2.83 crore people (87.59 lakh white cards) will receive free ration and financial assistance of Rs 1,500. Total Rs 2,417 Cr of expenditure will be borne by the government," KT Rama Rao, the Minister in KCR's cabinet, said.

After Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, among others, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have taken up measures to counter the economic losses suffered by the poor due to the ongoing tragedy.