With water continuing to recede from more areas, efforts to clean up the houses in the flood-ravaged parts of Kottayam gathered momentum on Wednesday.
Submerged in water and slush that came surging down the Meenachil river for about five days, the floors of several houses in the low-lying areas were covered under thick layers of slimy mud. Besides the houses, the floodwaters had also entered the roads and smashed the polder bunds at various locations.
Meanwhile, the villages on the banks of the Vembanad lake continued to reel under the impact of the flood with water yet to drain out completely. Bund breaches were still being reported from the region. Paddy cultivation in about 2,849 hectares has been destroyed so far.
According to sources, paddy crop in Kallara, Thalayazham, and Thiruvarpp grama panchayat was totally lost while cultivation in other panchayats like Arppookkara, Aymanam, and Kumarakom in Ettumanoor block, and Vechoor and Edayazham in Vaikom block has been significantly damaged.
As per estimates by Salomi Thomas, Principal Agricultural Officer in Kottayam, about 14,308 farmers in the district sustained losses in the heavy rains, the value of which was pegged at ₹74.79 crore. Besides paddy, rubber, tapioca, plantain and vegetables in over 3,000 acres of areas were also destroyed by the rain.
The value of crop loss is expected to go up in the coming days, as floodwater is yet to recede from a large portion of northern Kuttanad region.
The district currently has 183 relief camps , which together accommodated 5,651 people from 1,927 families.
