We are with you in this hour of crisis: Rahul promises Kerala all help to rebuild

Incessant rain and the consequent floods have caused widespread damage in Kerala with 83 dead and over 2.87 lakh people displaced.

Rahul Gandhi, the Congress MP from Wayanad, has assured all help to the people of his flood-hit constituency rebuild their lives.

"We are all with you in this hour of crisis and I call upon not just Congress workers, but all the people to work to ease the suffering of the people. You don't have to worry about your future as we will help you rebuild your lives," said Gandhi while addressing a relief camp at Thiruvampady on Monday.

"Today is Eid and though I know that the people are distressed, I take this opportunity to wish all of you 'Eid Mubarak'. We will use the spirit of Eid to help the people who are suffering," said Gandhi.

He also told the gathering that he had spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday seeking help for flood-hit Kerala.

On the 2nd day of my visit to Wayanad, my parliamentary constituency that has been badly hit by devastating floods, I met with members of the media to update them on my review meetings with state & district officials and my visits to affected sites and relief camps. pic.twitter.com/sbr9tC0ayx

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 12, 2019

Incessant rain and the consequent floods have caused widespread damage in Kerala. The flood fury has left 83 dead and displaced over 2.87 lakh people, who have taken shelter in over 1,654 relief shelters set up across the state.

The maximum deaths -- 27 -- have been reported from Wayanad, an area spread over three districts -- Wayanad, Kozhikode and Malappuram.

Rahul Gandhi arrived in the constituency on Sunday, and has been visiting relief camps here since Monday morning. He has so far visited camps at Nilambur in Malappuram district, Thiruvampady in Kozhikode district, Meppadi in Wayanad, besides attending review meetings called by the District Collectors of Malappuram, Kozhikode and Wayanad.

Gandhi also visited relief camps at Kavalapara, where a mudslide on Friday wiped out an entire village. Over 50 people are still feared trapped under the debris.

At the camps, he interacted with the people, asked them about their loss and the things they need. At Meppadi, he spoke to a young girl, with Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala playing the translator between them.

In all his interactions, Gandhi has assured all help to the flood-victims in rebuilding their lives. His next visits are to the camps in Munderi and Panamaram.

"Tomorrow, Rahul Gandhi will take stock of the situation in Kannur from where he will return to Delhi," said a staff attached to Chennithala, who is accompanying the former Congress president.

"People have told me that they have nowhere to go as their homes have been damaged fully or partially. I have spoken to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Prime Minister and have told them that the affected people here must be compensated as soon as possible. I am also working on a report on the flood situation," Gandhi told the media.

Though there was no rain on Monday, the Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted more showers over the next three days.

"Starting tomorrow, rains will be heavy in Alappuzha, Ernakulam and Idukki till Wednesday, while on Thursday it's going to be isolated rains," said an IMD official.

Like in the past few days, Monday also saw some long-distance trains cancelled. A few trains, which were cancelled earlier, have started running.

According to preliminary estimates given by State Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar, more than 18,000 hectares of crop has been lost affecting about 81,000 farmers and resulting in a total estimated loss of more than Rs 800 crore.