Heavy Monsoon in India has triggered flooding and landslides, raising the death toll to 159, according to a report by The Economic Times. Moreover, officials said that rescue operations are going on, as many are still missing.
According to the Meteorological Department, the western coast of the country has been facing unprecedented rains since Thursday and is likely to receive more.
Flooding and Landslides are common phenomena that occur every year during the monsoon season, and it affects the areas with poorly constructed houses in a severe manner.
In Maharashtra, 149 people have been casualties of the floods, including more than 40 in a landslide that hit the hillside village of Taliye, south of Mumbai.
And according to a record of yesterday, eight more teams were deployed in Maharashtra, making it a total of 34 units set for the rescue.
One of the Villagers, Jayram Mahaske, whose relatives remained trapped, while talking about the impact of the landslide, told the AFP news agency that “many people were washed away as they were trying to run away.”
Experts believe that climate change has triggered this annual flood.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told reporters after visiting Chiplun on Sunday that “Rain, floods, water are not new to the people here but what happened this time was unimaginable and they could not even save their belongings due to the rapid rise of water.”
Eight patients in a Covid 19 facility were also casualties of the impact of floods as the power supply of the ventilators were cut off.
While pointing at the mounted debris and sludge around him, a shopkeeper told Indian news broadcaster NDTV, “The water level reached the ceiling of my shop; there was so much water inside. All the shops in this area have been completely damaged. The flood has left so much soil behind; we can’t even resume work.”
The Meteorological Department has also issued an ‘orange alert’ for Madhya Pradesh stating that heavy rains for 24 hours could be expected in 24 districts as incessant rains have not stopped in the area for long, reported India Today.
The department added that ten districts of the state, including Bhopal, Chambal, and Indore, are likely to receive rain accompanied by thunderstorms.
Moreover, the fatality of nine people was reported due to a severe landslide in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh, according to a report by First Post. Three injured people are under treatment as well.
PM Modi expressed his condolences for the departed souls and assured them that proper treatment would be provided to the injured.
Moreover, he also announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the next of the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.
The CM of Himachal Pradesh, CM Jairam Thakur, announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to kin of those who lost their lives in the accident in Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh as well. The government would take care of the treatment of the injured, wrote ANI in a tweet.
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