The state has suffered losses of Rs 4,000 crore and the figure is likely to go up as estimates continue to pour in, he said.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday called off his planned visit to the United States to attend the United Nation General Assembly because of heavy rains and floods in southern Pakistan, an official spokesman said.
"We are making serious attempts to rescue people marooned in flood waters based on inputs we get from various sources, including people," asserted a top Indian Air Force official overseeing the marathon operations by his force amidst allegations by some people that forces had not reached all the affected people.
The flooding in Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra has left people without homes and brought about destruction worth crores.
Intense monsoon rains brought normal life to a standstill in several parts of eastern and central Rajasthan, flooding out roads, rail tracks, low-lying residential areas and hospitals and claiming seven lives since Sunday night.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has presented a bleak picture of the country's dwindling economy, regretting that even friendly countries had started looking at Pakistan as one that was always begging for money.
Cyclone Biparjoy has left a trail of destruction in Gujarat's Kutch and Saurashtra regions as some 1,000 villages are still without power with hundreds of electric poles getting damaged, while several coastal villages were flooded due to heavy rains and incoming seawater, officials said on Friday, a day after the storm made landfall.
Six decades and more later, we are now captives of our identities. Every poll is based on elaborate calculations of electability of candidates on the basis of their castes and other narrow definers. That, along with voter promiscuity, is what defines our political culture, which remains stubbornly resistant to any change, asserts Shreekant Sambrani.
The death toll in the devastating floods in Andhra Pradesh rose to 63 on Tuesday even as the situation improved and outflows from Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar projects were being reduced gradually. The highest number of 38 deaths were reported in Kurnool district, followed by 20 in Mahabubnagar district, three in Nalgonda and one each in Krishna and Guntur.
Officials however warned of a 4.81 metre high tide in afternoon coupled with heavy showers, which may cause flash floods in low-lying areas in the city.
The flash flood was triggered by the bursting of the Shadi Kor dam in Pasni Tehsil burst on Thursday following heavy rains.
The death toll from flood-related incidents rose to 63 today in Uttar Pradesh with the situation remaining grim in several areas, even as most parts of the northern region experienced dry weather with mercury rising by a few notches.
With flood waters of Mahanadi river system slowly receding in the delta region, Orissa government on Tuesday accelerated relief work in the affected areas with focus on health care, sanitation and supply of safe drinking water.
Mumbai and its adjoining areas were lashed by heavy showers on Tuesday, causing water-logging at a number of places, including railway tracks, which slowed the movement of trains and vehicles on roads.
The victim was a farmer apparently taking part in the protest in the district's Longowal area, where police were trying to stop protesters from blocking a national highway and a toll plaza, officials said.
According to the latest Central Water Commission report, as many as 41 reservoirs across the country are choked up with excess water that might result in disastrous floods especially in the western and southern belt of the country.
Suburban services were disrupted with trains on all the three lines -- western, central and harbour -- running late.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on Tuesday visited Thane and adjoining areas affected by heavy rains since last week.\n
Helicopter Pilot Wing Commander Deepika Misra rescued 47 people in an operation that lasted 8 days in flood-ravaged Madhya Pradesh.
Even as Bihar continues its own rehabilitation after it was ravaged by floods, the state has offered Rs 10 crore for relief works for the flood-affected people in Jammu and Kashmir, besides supply of dry ration and boats.
Overburdening of hills with construction coupled with saturation of soil and seepage seem to be responsible for landslides in Shimla city, said Principal Scientific Officer, Himachal Pradesh Council for Science Technology and Environment (HIMCOSTE) S S Randhawa.
'It was a helpless situation for me and my family. We were staying on the first floor as the ground floor was filled with flood water,' says Parveez Rasool, the only cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to have played for India.
Retreating monsoon claimed 12 more lives as the death toll due to torrential rains and rampaging floods in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh soared to 205 on Monday even as relief operations were on in full swing in the two states to provide succour to the affected.
According to officials, the Ganga was flowing at 463.20 metres following which water filled up in Sangam Ghat, Ramkund, Dhaneshwar Ghat and Fuladi Ghat. There was also a tremendous jump in the water level of the Ganga after 2,000-3,000 cusecs of water was released from the dam of the GVK hydroelectric project built on the Alaknanda river.
The burgeoning death notices come amid apprehensions that the number of cases and casualties are being underreported for a variety of reasons.
Unprecedented rains and floods in the northern region in the past few days have not only caused extensive damage to lives and property but have also impacted business and commercial establishments. Vegetable prices have gone through the roof in the national capital and many other parts of the country since rains started pouring earlier this month. Traders say vegetable prices would come down only after roads open and skies clear, even as water in the fields will take time to recede.
At present, the Met department is often unable to provide exact information on the exact amount of rain over a localised area.
Gushing water in the swollen Mahanadi triggered seven breaches in embankments in the river system in Kendrapara, Angul and Cuttack districts as 40 of the 64 sluice gates of Hirakud dam on the river were opened to discharge excess inflow, official sources said. While official sources said that seven people were killed in the floods on Friday, unofficial sources put the figure at 13.
Do it yourself! That was the mantra behind the valiant efforts by nearly 3,000 residents of Old Barzullah locality in Srinagar to save themselves from the overflowing Doodh Ganga stream that threatened to seep into their homes.
Over two lakh people in Vadodara are facing a flood-like situation as the Vishwamitri River has swelled following incessant rains in catchment areas and inundated residential colonies in its vicinity.
'The buildings all around had caved in or were damaged. The trees were all uprooted. Things were very scary.'
After an aerial survey of the flood-hit areas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced an immediate release of Rs 1,000 crore for relief and rehabilitation works in Tamil Nadu.
In Jodhpur district, the Army was alerted and IAF helicopters were kept on stand by as cracks developed in in the main wall of 118-year-old Jaswant Sagar dam following heavy rains in its catchment areas.
In signs of easing of situation, the water levels of Adyar and Kumbh rivers have fallen considerably following reduced discharge from reservoirs on Thursday night.
The Panchganga river in Kolhapur city touched the 43-feet danger mark
Nearly 86 lakh people in the state's 32 districts have been affected by heavy rain and subsequent floods this year, bringing life to a screeching halt in many parts.
For all the blame-game over the flood preparedness in Chennai and elsewhere in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, this is not the first of its kind. Nor would it be the last, given the nature of the north-east monsoon, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Election Commission on Wednesday put off its proposed visit to Jammu and Kashmir for review of election preparedness following the flood situation in the state.
