Thiruvananthapuram: With severe flooding across the State of Kerala, all the flight operations at the Kochi International Airport have been suspended till 18th August, 2 PM, announced Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s office on Wednesday.
CM Pinarayi Vijayan called an emergency meeting and reviewed the flood situation in the State. He instructed officials and agencies to be on high alert since many parts of the State are still experiencing heavy rainfall, with the water levels in the dams rising. The Chief Minister also spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh over phone informing them about the intensifying flood situation in the State. PM Modi assured him Centre’s assistance in handling the situation.
Had a detailed discussion with Kerala CM Shri Pinarayi Vijayan regarding the unfortunate flood situation in the state. Centre stands firmly with the people of Kerala and is ready to provide any assistance needed. @CMOKerala
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 15, 2018
Schools and colleges have been declared closed tomorrow in 8 districts namely Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha, Thrissur, Kollam, Kozhikode, Kottayam and Ernakulam. The Kerala University of Health Sciences has postponed all the theory examinations scheduled for Thursday and Friday. Similarly, all examinations of the University of Kerala scheduled for August 16-17 have been postponed for time being.
At present, water is being released through 35 reservoirs, a first in history. “A red alert has been issued for Ernakulam, Idukki, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasargod, Thrissur, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta district,” said CMO Kerala.
With the rescue operation still continuing, over one lakh people have been rescued in the state. Meanwhile,the state government has advised people living close to Periyar river in Ernakulam, Idukki and Thrissur to move to relief camps. ANI reported that four teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been airlifted from Pune airport to Kerala for the rescue operations.
Ms Kalinga