Aug 24, 2018 12:00 (IST)
Kerala Agriculture Minister Sunil Kumar spoke with NDTV on the Kerala Floods and the rescue operations. Here are the main pointers from the interview:
On airlifting people:
- Airlifting being done because so many villages are isolated. Boats could not reach the villages, air operations are thus still on.
- People not being lifted because they are safe, water level is not coming up but there is a shortage of food and medicines.
- Aerial operation is dropping food and water to the areas.
On estimated number of people in rescue camps and number of stranded people:
- There are more than 2 lakh people in Thrissur relief camps.
- More than 42 villages are under water.
On the new development in the rescue:
- Military already deployed to rescue people from isolated areas and more rescue camps are required in Thrissur and we are working towards it
On the 10 lakh people in camps:
- Food supplies, medicines are being provided. A lot of help is coming from all over the country. The main problem is the camps are completely isolated. Water is almost 7 feet high and thus we could not reach there. So we moved to areas with 5-5 and half feet water so that the people could be moved there. This is the current operation we are working on.
On Rs 500 crore grant for Kerala:
- The amount is very less as total losses are more than 20,000 crore. As per law, government should provide 1200 crores for natural disaster. So 500 crores is a very small amount. We are asking for 2000 crores... But government is helping and supporting with military.