It is actually about 4.5 million.
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Meanwhile, the South Central Railway (SCR) has cancelled/ diverted/ partially cancelled and rescheduled several trains following heavy rains and water flowing above danger level at railway bridges in Chennai-Gudur section.
Amrit Sangma, Caritas India communication officer, told Matters India on December 2 that they will provide food, wash kits and clothes to affected people with the support of its four local partners.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday took stock of the flood situation in Tamil Nadu and discussed it with his cabinet colleagues, including the ministers of Home, Finance and Defence.
Singh said the Tamil Nadu government had demanded Rs.8,480.93 crore for flood destruction and Rs. 940 crore had been released as immediate relief.
Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa conducted an aerial survey of flood affected areas, while Assocham predicted that the loss to the state could amount to Rs 15,000 crore. The government of India stands by the people of Tamil Nadu in their hour of need. I have talked to the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister on this matter.
In the wake of the havoc in Chennai due to heavy rains, the United States consulate in India has advised U.S. citizens to temporarily defer non-essential travel plans to the city and has also suspended visa services for now.
The Indian Air Force airlifted 200 people to Hyderabad. The state government is yet to release official figures.
Three more NDRF teams have joined the relief and rescue work in addition to 14 teams already pressed into service.
“By 6 am today, the situation had deteriorated severely, leading to submerging of entire operational area in approximately seven feet of water”. Water overflowing from rivers and reservoirs has reached nearly every locality, including the posh areas.
Diesel and petrol are in short supply and there are long queues of motorists at the few petrol pumps that are open.
MINI WATERBODIES: Chennai roads have turned into mini water bodies as the incessant downpour inundated them, rendering many useless. Mobile phones and landline services were choked. Some Tamil channels were also off air.
Chennai floods have caused shortages of essentials like milk and vegetables in the city. Army, Navy and teams of the National Disaster Management Force (NDRF) are engaged in rescue and relief operations across the city.
The army has been deployed to rescue thousands of stranded people, and the death toll is expected to rise.
“We were aware of the first wave of floods which hit Chennai about two weeks ago, and were told the worst was over”.
A Navy official involved in the rescue efforts said that most of the places are flooded and lot of efforts are going on both on the ground and by air.
The life in Chennai and its suburbs has come to a grinding halt following the unprecedented deluge, with scores of stranded citizens making their way through waist-deep water with all modes of transport and communication falling prey to the rain fury.
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The monsoon season began in Tamil Nadu on October 1, and it has not stopped raining in the state since then. There could also be heavy rains over south coastal Andhra Pradesh today, it said.
