483 dead, flood loss more than annual outlay
The Kerala flood disaster has claimed 483 lives and the estimated value of destruction ‘is more than the annual outlay of our state’, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vjayan said yesterday.
Initiating the debate at a special one-day session of the Assembly to discuss the disaster, Vijayan said 14 people still remained missing although flood waters have receded in almost all parts of the state.
He added that at the height of the floods, the worst to hit the state in a century, there were 1.45 million people in more than 3,000 relief camps.
‘The latest figure is — there are 59,296 people in 305 relief camps. A total of 57,000 hectares of agriculture crops have been destroyed. An approximate estimate of the loss is more than the annual outlay of our state,’ he said.
Navy donates Rs89m to the flood-hit state
Indian Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba yesterday handed over a cheque for Rs89 million (Dh460,662) to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for relief and rehabilitation work in the flood-ravaged state.
The money was collected through voluntary contributions by Navy personnel from their salaries.
Lanba, along with Southern Naval Command chief, Vice Admiral A.K. Chawla, Navy Wives Welfare Association (NWWA) President Reena Lanba and NWWA Southern Region head Sapana Chawla on Wednesday visited Muttinakam village in Ernakulam district of Kerala to review the relief work.
Relief material worth about Rs2.5 million from NWWA was handed over to area officials.
Rajnath promises all help for Kerala
Home Minister Rajnath Singh yesterday assured a delegation of Kerala MPs that the Centre will provide all possible help after the delegation said foreign assistance should be allowed to reach the flood-ravaged state.
The worst floods to devastate Kerala in nearly a century have left 483 people dead, displaced thousands and destroyed property on a massive scale.
The Minister’s assurance came after 11 Kerala MPs belonging to the Congress, CPI-M, RSP, Kerala Congress (Mani) and an independent apprised him about the situation in the state and demanded more support from the Modi government.
The MPs urged Rajnath Singh to allow foreign assistance to the state as the Centre, citing a 2004 government decision, had turned down a reported offer of Rs7 billion for flood relief and rehabilitation from an overseas country.
Adi Shankara ashram near Kochi cleaned
Volunteers working for more than a week have cleaned an ashram (hermitage) dedicated to Adi Shankara near Kocji after Kerala’s devastating floods left it covered with mud, filth and debris.
Activists from the Haridwar-based Gayatri Pariwar were involved in the cleaning operation at Kalady, considered the birthplace of Adi Shankara, close to the Cochin airport, which itself was flooded.
Gayatri Pariwar, a spiritual group, was also involved in providing relief and cleaning homes in other parts of Kerala, its head Pranav Pandya said in a statement.