Move FM Global News

KERALA, India – Dozens of people have been killed and thousands have been forced to evacuate as India’s southern state of Kerala witnesses the worst floods to hit the state. 

According to authorities in the state, torrential rains have triggered floods and landslides that have ravaged farmlands and prompted massive evacuations.

Senior officials said that more than half of the 14 districts in Kerala have been put on high alert.

Officials also confirmed that the on Saturday, the death toll from one of the state’s worst floods reached 37.

In an unprecedented step, authorities in Kerala are said to have opened the gates of 25 water reservoirs to prevent potentially disastrous breaches.

According to the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA), crops on 1,031 hectares (2547.66 acres) have been damaged and 31,000 people have been forced to take shelter in rescue camps.

Since the onset of torrential rains on May 29, state officials claim that crop worth $49.65 million (Rs. 3.42 billion), across 26,824 hectares had been destroyed by rains.

In a statement, PH Kurian, KSDMA’s chief and a top state bureaucrat, said, “There was no rain in the catchment areas of major reservoirs today. However, we will continue our alert and preparedness till August 15.”

Further, Kurian said that the Federal home minister Rajnath Singh was expected to travel to the state on Sunday to take a stock of the relief and rescue operations.

The state’s weather department has forecast heavy rains until August 15 and has warned of floods in low-lying coastal areas.

Kerala, which has 44 rivers, witnessed its worst floods in 1924.