Rs.76 crore sought as flood relief

State submits preliminary claim to Centre

November 02, 2012 10:47 am | Updated October 18, 2016 02:06 pm IST - KOCHI

Kerala has submitted a preliminary flood relief claim of Rs.76.19 crore to the Centre.

T.O. Sooraj, Principal Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management, who briefed the inter-ministerial Central team, said the State would file a revised claim shortly after incorporating the loss suffered in the agriculture, housing, and irrigation sectors. He hoped to file a supplementary claim in 10 days.

The assessment team led by M.A. Ganapathy, Joint secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, has S.M. Kolhatkar, T.K. Sivarajan, and R. Ellavarason as its members. The team will visit Kothamangalam, Pullooranpara, and Iritty, the worst-hit areas. They will also hold discussion with the Revenue Minister on November 3 after the tour.

Landslips

The heavy rain that lashed the State from August 7 resulted in landslips and floods in several districts. Landslips were reported in Kannur, Kozhikode, Palakkad, Ernakulam, Idukki, and Kottayam districts.

Flood situation prevailed in Kannur district. The rise in water level in Pazahsshi dam in Iritty, Kannur, resulted in flooding, said a report submitted to the visiting team.

In Kannur, two landslips were reported from Karikottakiri and Murikkan Kara in Ayyankunnu village in Thalassery on August 6 and 7. Landslip occurred on August 26 at Thirumeni village. In Kozhikode, over 35 debris flows were reported from Pullooranpara-Anakkampoyil region on August 6.

Debris flow

A major debris flow occurred in Kadavoor village of Kothamangalam in Ernakulam on August 17 and six lives were lost. The major landslip that took place on August 14 at Kaduvappara in Idukki caused severe crop loss.

Two minor debris flows were reported from Thalappalam and Tikoy villages of Kottayam destroying a few acres of farm land.

An arterial road in the region was blocked in one of the debris flows, the report said.

The calamities claimed 15 lives and left seven injured. It also damaged 87 houses in the State.

The landslips caused severe crop loss in affected areas. Rivers were in spate and it breached banks at many places, inundating low-lying areas.

According to the initial assessment, crops in 541 hectares were damaged. As debris was accumulated over the affected areas, earth removers and manual labour had to be deployed for clearing them, the report said.

Roads damaged

The de-silting and clearing of debris from agricultural land and public areas had to be undertaken in the State. The incidents affected 112 km of road network.

Draining of flood water was a major challenge in Iritty. Flood water had to be drained using motor pumps at many locations in the town and the downstream areas of Pazhassi dam.

Nine relief camps were opened in four districts and 956 people were accommodated, including women and children.

Repair and restoration works had to be carried out in canals in around 100 km.

The calamities also damaged 70 open wells.

The breach of canals resulted in flooding of several localities and hence the bunds had to be restored and reinforced, the report said.

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