#KeralaFloods Saturday: Water receding in parts, including from Kochi airport, but floods far away from over. Rescue and relief operations going on across the state. CM says: 80 landslides. 42 deaths, 11 in Wayanad alone. 108138 from about 30000 families in relief camps.
CM: In Wayanad, rains have reduced, but it is supposed to intensify after noon. 24990 families are in relief camps. Banasura Sagar dam shutters will be opened after 3pm (Saturday). Will release water moderately, but people on both sides of the river bank should be vigilant.
Kerala to airlift food supplies. CM: In Malappuram, 200 families and some officials are stuck. There is no difficulty for getting food supplies now, but we are expecting trouble over the coming days. Bcoz the connectivity is cut. We will need to airlift food using helicopters.
Wayanad's peril: 11 killed, 24990 families displaced (official figs as of Saturday first half). Banasura Sagar dam to be opened after 3pm. Roads, the only connectivity there, flooded across the dist. A fresh landslide reported in Rannimala. Rahul Gandhi to reach on Sunday
Dam stats. CM said that Idukki dam was 98.27% full on this day in 2018, now it is only 35%. Likewise, Pampa dam was 99% full last year on this day, only 60.62% now.
Lavanya, eight months pregnant, rescued from Attappadi. Incredible!
When the story gets personal. Just spoke to my aunt in Kerala's Clt, whose neighbourhood is flooded. She broke down over the phone, asking if she'd lose her house. She built that house selling appams. Woke up 3am everyday, toiled until the day break. Did we fail her as a society?
#Kerala needs to do some plainspeaking. We need rainfall predictions for every valley, hill& river— not the dist& state avg dolled out— the geo is that diverse. In Clt (on red alert) my house has power 24*7, no flooding. But relatives in low lying areas just kms away are flooded.
People need to be told about floods in their vicinity, and moved to camps, days ahead. Not after the rains begin. This is easier said than done. It's hard to convince abt leaving her livelihood behind& move to a camp, unless perhaps it's the impact can be demonstrated in advance.
We need a task force to implement env codes (there's no shortage of laws), master plans for dists (there isn't any now), and a dept of climate change that has some teeth, that can issue punishment. Alas, wouldn't dams be better managed by one center for all?
These does not exist not just in #Kerala but across India. But when we brought land reforms in 1957, build public schools, hospitals, literacy campaign, decentralisation, panchayati raj insts, Kudumbashree, where these heard of anywhere else? When did we stop pioneering in ideas?
Banasura Sagar opened. Tens of thousands evacuated in advance. A fresh landslide reported from Malappuram's Kavalappara-Bhoothanam, where rescue operations have been underway after one of the biggest landslides in this monsoon.
Rains would be lesser on Sunday, except in Wayanad, Kannur and Kasargod which will be on red alert.
#KeralaFloods2019 46 deaths, 1.45 lakh displaced: data from disaster management cell (Saturday, 5.30pm).
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