Over 3 lakh still lodged in Kerala's flood relief camps; donations to CM's relief fund touch Rs 700 crore

Thiruvananthapuram: Over 3.26 lakh people are still in relief camps across Kerala even after a fortnight of the devastating deluge that left a trail of destruction claiming 322 lives and rendering thousands homeless. With rehabilitation measures on, the government on Monday said an immediate relief of Rs 10,000 would be disbursed soon to the flood-affected. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan issued necessary instructions to district collectors on the aid during a video conference to review the post-flood situation in the state. A total of 3,42,699 people are in 1,093 relief camps, a release from chief minister’s office said. As per the latest government update on the flood situation, 322 people have lost their lives in the monsoon fury since 8 August. [caption id=“attachment_5057981” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File of a collapsed house after floods in Paravur, in Kerala, on 23 August. Reuters[/caption] Though several people are returning home, Vijayan said the relief camps have to be continued for few more days. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will arrive in Thiruvananthapuram  on Tuesday for a two-day visit to the flood-affected areas. In a tweet, he said he would visit some relief camps and also meet fishermen and party volunteers involved in relief work. He will visit Alappuzha, Chengannur and Ernakulam and some places in Wayanad and Kozhikode districts on 29 August. A release from the chief minister’s office said work of burying carcasses were nearing completion and four lakh birds and more than 22,000 small and big animals have been buried. Vijayan asked district authorities to finalise the loss suffered by each sector without delay. Meanwhile, several people have come forward, responding to the chief minister’s appeal to donate one month salary for the chief minister’s disaster relief fund. Governor P Sathasivam has handed over a cheque for Rs 2.50 lakh as balance amount towards his contribution of one month’s salary to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF). The governor had earlier contributed Rs 1 lakh on 14 August. The total amount received towards the CMDRF touched Rs 700 crore on Monday, officials said. As the state was focusing on cleaning houses and public places on a large-scale, gram sabhas at Kuttanad in Alappuzha would be undertaking a cleaning drive with participation of 75,000 volunteers on Tuesday. Many places of Kuttanad, an area which is below sea level, is still waterlogged and people are finding it difficult to return home. State finance minister TM Thomas Isaac said more than 75,000 volunteers drawn from various parts of the state are expected to participate in the cleaning programme. Centres to collect relief materials were assisting the flood-hit people to get back on their feet and are now in the process of preparing special kits consisting of five kilograms of rice and other essential items to those returning home from camps. Meanwhile, telecom authorities said 98 percent connectivity have been restored in flood-hit areas as part of disaster mitigation activities taken up by the Telecom department, BSNL, telecom service providers and telecom infrastructure providers in collaboration with the state government.