Flood death count crosses 200 in four states, rescue operations stepped up

Over 120 people were airlifted from an inundated road in Kutch as rescue operations were stepped up on Monday in flood-hit Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra, the four states where nearly 200 people have perished so far, while nine people were killed in landslides in Uttarakhand and Jammu following heavy rains.

Rains subsided in many parts of the flood-hit states where over 12 lakh people have been affected and the water level has started receding in the deluge-ravaged areas, officials said. The death toll in Kerala rose to 76 on Monday, while in Karnataka, Gujarat and Maharashtra, 116 people have lost their lives so far due to monsoon fury, as per official data.

Nearly 125 people stranded on a road washed away by floods in Gujarat's Kutch district were rescued by the Indian Air Force (IAF), while in Karnataka and Maharashtra works have started to repair roads damaged by landslides and heavy rains.

In the hill state of Uttarakhand, which is being lashed by heavy rains, six persons, including a woman and her nine-month-old daughter, were buried alive in landslides in three different villages in Chamoli district.

Erosion caused by swirling waters of the flooded Chuflagad River also washed away two buildings on its banks.  The state emergency operation centre in Dehradun said the debris of landslides fell on three houses in Banjabgad, Aligaon and Lankhi villages in the district's Ghat area trapping occupants.

The six people suffocated to death, the centre said. In Jammu and Kashmir, three members of a family died after they came under a boulder during a landslide in Resai district.

Two others were also injured in the incident that took place on Sunday evening in Laar village in the district's Mahore belt.

In states hit by floods, several roads were cleared on Monday, allowing partial movement of traffic, with priority being given to trucks carrying essential goods.

The Mumbai-Bengaluru National Highway-4, which was closed near Kolhapur in Maharashtra for the last six days, was partially opened for traffic on Monday after the flood waters receded and thousands of stranded trucks carrying essential commodities were allowed to move.

Traffic movement was also allowed between Kolhapur and Belgaum in Karnataka. Precaution is being maintained in the deluge-hit states as most rivers are in a spate and reservoirs at the danger mark.

In Kerala, the death toll increased to 76 and 2.87 lakh people have sought refuge in relief camps, official said, fearing the toll is may go up as 50 people are still missing in Malappuram.

There is no 'red alert' of torrential rains for any of the 14 districts on Tuesday, but "orange alert" has been issued for six districts.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday visited flood affected areas in his Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in the state, including the worst-hit Puthumala area, and assured all help to those hit by the calamity to rebuild their lives. 

Shri @RahulGandhi addresses the media after a flood review meeting with govt. officials in Wayanad, Kerala. pic.twitter.com/pds8YcuLZl

— Congress (@INCIndia) August 12, 2019

In Karanataka, 80 taluks in 17 districts have been affected due to floods and rains, and the state government has put the death toll at 42 and those missing at 12.

The state on Monday announced an assistance of Rs 5 lakh each to those who have lost their houses completely in the floods and landslides, to take up construction work, Rs 1 lakh to those whose houses were damaged and Rs 5,000 monthly to those staying in rental accommodations till their houses are ready.

Due to the deluge, a total of 5,81,702 people have been evacuated till Saturday evening and 1,168 relief camps opened where 3,27,354 people are taking shelter.

In Maharashtra, the death toll increased to 43 on Monday and as on Sunday nearly 4.48 lakh people were evacuated from flood-hit areas, including 4.04 lakh from Kolhapur and Sangli, officials said, adding that 761 villages in 69 taluks have been affected by floods.

They were shifted to 372 temporary camps and shelters. In Gujarat where nearly 31 people have died in rain-related incidents in the last five days, efforts are on to trace and rescue fishermen of two missing boats.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the IAF, state disaster response forces and local administration are providing relief and conducting rescue operations in states hit by monsoon fury.

Heavy rainfall was recorded in parts of Odisha West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand in the east and also in areas of northeast India, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Rainfall was also reported from parts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. In the national capital, it was a humid Monday with the minimum temperature settling at 28 degrees Celsius, a notch above the season's average.

Humidity was recorded at 84 per cent at 8.30 am. The Safdarjung observatory recorded 0.2 mm rainfall till 8.30 am while Lodhi Road received 0.8 mm rainfall.