Rescue and relief operations continue in full swing in Kerala where flash floods and landslides triggered by torrential monsoon rains have left a trail of destruction killing over 324 people.
Over 2,23,000 people have been forced into 1,568 relief camps across the state so far, said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Several teams of Army, Navy and Air Force besides the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are in an all out effort to rescue and evacuate people stranded on rooftops and hilltops. Dozens of helicopters and hundreds of boats have been deployed for the rescue operations.
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Over 40,000 police personnel and 3200 fire force staff participated in Friday's rescue operations along with 46 units of Navy, 13 units of Air Force, 18 units of Army, 16 units of Coast Guard and 24 units of NDRF.
The deadliest deluge in close to a century has dealt a body blow to the scenic state, wrecking its tourism industry, destroying standing crops in thousands of hectares and inflicting huge damage to infrastructure. The central government had announced an immediate relief of Rs 100 crore to the state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday night. He will leave for Kochi on Saturday morning and will conduct an aerial survey of the flood-hit areas.
Hundreds of people, including women and children, are still trapped in their flooded houses making desperate appeals for help.
Meanwhile, the regional weather office said the southwest monsoon over Kerala will bring in more heavy spells during the weekend in the state, besides Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
With shutters of dozens of the dams lifted to push out the excess water, most of the rivers in the state are in full spate triggering floods in several areas. All districts barring Thiruvananthapuram and Kasaragod remain on red alert while these two districts are on orange alert.
Road, rail and flight traffic remains badly affected. Cochin International Airport has already been closed till August 26.
Aviation regulator DGCA has asked domestic airlines to operate additional flights to Thiruvananthapuram and Calicut, and cap the fares. Of the 71 arrivals and 74 departures of scheduled domestic airlines to and from the Cochin airport, 23 arrivals and 24 departures have been rescheduled and an additional 19 arrivals and departures have been diverted to and from Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode and Coimbatore airports, the DGCA said in a statement on Friday evening. National carrier Air India said its flights scheduled to depart from the Cochin airport, which has been shut down till August 26 due to floods, will operate from Thiruvananthapuram. The airline said the new schedule is for the August 18-20 period.
Several other states have come forward to help rain-ravaged Kerala with Punjab and Delhi governments announcing a contribution of Rs 10 crore each to the flood relief fund. The Telangana government announced an assistance of Rs 25 crore to the state. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu had earlier announced Rs 10 crore and Rs 5 crore respectively, as immediate relief to Kerala.
The women and child development ministry is coordinating with the Air Force and Kerala government to deliver 100 metric tonnes of ready-to-eat food packets to the flood-affected children in the state, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi said. "To aid distressed children stuck in this massive calamity, I have arranged 100 MT of ready-to-eat food. Have also assured the state government for more supplies," Gandhi said in a tweet.
With inputs from PTI