Over 100 people have lost their lives in Keral, K’taka and Maharashtra
NEW DELHI : Incessant rains and subsequent floods have wreaked havoc majorly in three states of the country—Karnataka, Kerala and Maharashtra, claiming lives of more than 100 people and displacing over thousands of people.
The southern state of Kerala is the worst affected by the deluge as the number of dead here crossed 50. So far, as many as 68 people have been killed and over 1 lakh people were displaced in the state due to floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains. A red alert has also been issued for eight districts.
Maharashtra is ravaged with heavy rains and floods that claimed the lives of 29 people across the state. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said that the state received more than double rainfall recorded in 2005.
On Saturday, the Indian Army, NDRF and other relief teams intensified their relief and rescue operations in the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited a relief camp at Boodanam Church at Malappuram in Kerala and reviewed relief measures in the flood-ravaged district. Mr Gandhi, who represents Wayanad in the Lok Sabha, also interacted with flood victims.
Earlier, he spoke to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and key government officials to discuss the flood situation in Wayanad. He had also requested his party workers and leaders in Kerala to help with relief operations in flood-hit areas of Wayanad.
“I hope the State Govt will release a generous financial rehabilitation package to help those who’ve been impacted by the floods,” Rahul had said in a tweet, adding, he would be reaching out to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to seek Central government’s assistance.
Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas of Karnataka’s Belagavi district today. At least 30 people have died and more than two lakh people have been evacuated in the state, chief minister BS Yediyurappa has said.
More than 100 people have been killed over the last one week and lakhs have been displaced in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala, which were also hit by floods. However, in a sign that the situation was easing in Kerala, the Kochi airport began functioning this afternoon.
After his aerial survey, Amit Shah held a meeting with officials involved in rescue and rehabilitation work at Sambra airport. The central and state governments are both committed to helping people in distress, he said.
The number of people who have died in floods and heavy rainfall across Pune division has reached 40, and three people are still missing. The authorities said 104 teams belonging to various agencies, besides 182 boats, are still hard at work in Sangli and Kolhapur.
The Pinarayi Vijayan government of Kerala — which is yet to recover from the worst flood it faced in a century — has ordered military teams to form rescue units and airlift food to stranded villages across the state.
The heavy rains that have been lashing Kerala over the last few days seem to be easing, weather officials said. However, the number of dead rose to 72 while over 2.54 lakh displaced people continued to languish in relief camps.
Flight operations from the Cochin International Airport resumed on Sunday afternoon, two days after it was shut due to flooding of the runway area after heavy rains. An Abu Dhabi-Kochi Indigo flight was the first to touch down at the airport around 12.15 pm.
As many as 173 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed across the country for rescue and relief work. An NDRF Control Room in New Delhi is functioning round the clock to keep an eye on the developments.
The incessant rains have caused large scale destruction in at least nine states, including Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, killing over 100 people and displacing lakhs.*With Agency Inputs),
