KERALA rescuers Go All-out to save victims
ANNOUNCES INTERIM RELIEF
KOCHI: Rescuers in helicopters and boats fought through renewed torrential rain on Saturday to reach stranded villages in India’s Kerala state as the toll from the worst monsoon floods in a century rose above 330 dead.
MODI GRATEFUL
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum for his gracious offer to support Kerala.
Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Saturday and announced an extra interim relief of Rs5 billion. Modi described the crisis as “devastating.”
After the meeting, the premier made a short aerial assessment of the damages, “as permitted by weather conditions,” an official statement said.
Modi also announced an exgratia of Rs200,000 each to the kin of the deceased and Rs50,000 each to those seriously injured in the floods, out of Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.
“I salute the people of Kerala for their fighting spirit.” Modi later tweeted.
“I would also like to appreciate the wide support and solidarity from people across India.”
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who attended the meeting requested immediate allocation of 20 more helicopters and 600 motorised boats and a reinforcement of thenational Disaster Relief Force with 40 more teams, four Army engineer task forces and 10 more Navy teams.
Dozens of military and coastguard helicopters took troops to high risk areas seeking people trapped on the roofs of submerged buildings.
Media reports said at least another 14 bodies were found on Saturday and state officials said they expected the number to rise as more landslides were reported and dam levels remained dangerously high.
No new official toll was given however.
“Since May 29, when the monsoon made landfall in Kerala, a total of 357 people have lost their lives until now. Crops over 40,000 hectares have been lost and over 26,000 houses suffered total or partial damage. The state has nearly 353,000 people sheltered in 3,026 relief camps right now. There has been loss of livestock too, with 46,000 cattle and over 200,000 poultry estimated to have perished in the floods. Public Works Department (PWD) roads along 16,000 km and local roads along 82,000 km besides 134 bridges suffered severe damage. While damage to the roads is estimated to have made the state poorer by Rs13,000 crores (Rs130 billion), loss of bridges costs another Rs 800 crore (Rs8 billion),” Pinarayi told Modi.
With power and communication lines down, thousands remained trapped in towns and villages cut off by the floods amid growing shortages of food and water.
Helicopters have been dropping emergency food and water supplies across Kerala, while special trains carrying drinking water and rice have been sent to the state.
PM announces support of Rs5b; more than 353,000 people sheltered in 3,025 camps, and many families stuck in their homes have gone out of touch as power and communication links snapped after putting out a distress call; 1,000 homes swept away and 40,000 hectares of agriculture destroyed
KOCHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting here as Kerala continued battling its worst loods of a century for the tenth day on Saturday.
Governor P. Sathasivam, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, federal minister KJ Alphons and other top oficials attended the meeting at which he announced an interim relief of Rs.5 billion besides an earlier allocation of Rs1 billion.
After the review meeting, he made a short aerial assessment of the damages along with the three, “as permitted by weather conditions,” an oficial statement said.
The southern state has lost 164 lives in the present bout of loods since Aug.8, and hundreds of people are still missing. But the media reports suggested a much higher toll.
More than 353,000 people are sheltered in 3,025 camps, and many families stuck in their homes have gone out of touch as the power and communication links snapped after putting out a distress call.
Vijayan estimated the damages at Rs 195.12 billion. Some 1,000 homes were swept away, and 40,000 hectares of agriculture destroyed in loods and landslides.
It caused damages to 26,000 houses and killed 46,000 cattle and 200,000 chicken and ducks. It needs Rs 138 billion to rebuild 98,000 km of roads and 134 bridges.
The weathermen have predicted heavy rains on Saturday and sounded a red alert for 11 districts, except Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Kasaragod.
The spill of water from Idukki has been reduced from 1500 to 1000 cumecs, Idamalayar to 400 cumecs from 1400 and Banasura Sagar to 55 cumecs from 255.
Eight dams on River Pampa continue to spill water looding Kuttanad spread across Alleppey and Kottayam districts.
“I salute the people of Kerala for their ighting spirit.” Modi later tweeted.
“I would also like to appreciate the wide support and solidarity from people across India.” After the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, states like Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, Delhi, and Maharashtra have donated to the CM’S relief funds to the tune of around Rs 1 billion.
The Congress-led opposition, however, criticised the state and federal government for “too little and late response.” Legislators from the affected areas said the authorities were not providing enough food and medicines. VD Satheesan MLA said ive victims had died in a camp in his Paravur constituency without proper medication despite his frantic appeal for help.
“The casualties could not have gone up this level had they acted as we demanded and the security forces took over the entire operations,” said Ramesh Chennithala.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi demanded it is declared as a national disaster and treated accordingly.
“Dear PM, please declare #Kerala loods a National Disaster without any delay,” he tweeted. “The lives, livelihood, and future of millions of our people are at stake.” He also asked his party workers leaders to demonstrate the core Congress values of service and love, focussing all their resources and people to help those in need.
He wanted deployment of the Army and Navy, besides giving special inancial assistance to battle “the tragedy without parallel in Kerala’s history.” He also had urged them to contribute generously to the chief minister’s relief fund at https:// donation.cmdrf.kerala.gov.in.
Meanwhile, besides more units of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Border Security Force, Central Industrial Security Force, and Rapid Action Force have also joined rescue and relief operations.
The Air Force, Army, Navy and Coast Guard are assisting operations in different parts of Kerala, rescuing those who are trapped.
Modi offered to extend beneits under the PM’S housing and the national rural employment guarantee and various social security schemes to the affected on priority.
He directed federal agencies to render all possible assistance and cater to basic infrastructure needs in the wake of the loods.
“My thoughts are with the families of those who have lost their lives due to incessant looding across Kerala,” he said. “I hope the injured recover at the earliest.” He also assured the state relief materials including foodgrains and medicines.
He announced exgratia of Rs 200,000 to the next kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to those seriously injured from PM’S National Relief Funds (PMNRF).
He directed insurance companies to hold special camps for assessment and timely release of compensation to the beneiciaries under social security schemes.
The National Highways Authority will repair main national highways.
Villagers whose thatched houses have been destroyed would get new houses on priority irrespective of the waiting list.
“The lood situation in Kerala has been continuously and closely monitored,” the PMO said in a statement.
“All help is being provided to the state government to deal with the adverse situation.” NDRF had deployed 57 teams involving 1,300 troops and 435 boats for search and rescue operations, besides ive companies of BSF, CISF, and RAF.
The Army, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard also assist the state police and ireighters, using 40 helicopters and 20 aircraft and two ships.
Since Aug.9, the combined forces have rescued 6,714 people.
Idukki MP Joice George said many bodies were trapped under the debris in the district completely cut off from the rest of Kerala as roads swept away in loods. Power and communication links remain snapped, and essential supplies are arriving from Tamil Nadu on the other side of the Western Ghats.
Fishers and volunteers from different parts of the state are also active in rescue operations, rescuing more than 100,000 people so far. Attempts to rescue the stranded are on a war-footing in Chengannur now with four helicopters, ive military boats and 65 ishing boats.
Four 100-member teams of the Army have also joined them, and they are airdropping food packets to the stranded people.
Meanwhile, aviation minister Suresh Prabhu assured Vijayan to ensure that airlines do not overcharge after the Cochin airport closure.
The director general of civil aviation (DGCA) has asked the scheduled domestic airlines to mount additional lights from Trivandrum, Calicut and Coimbatore airports. Train and bus services in central Kerala continue to be affected, and the Railways have canceled many services.