1,500 stranded in flood-hit Kodagu of Karnataka; CM visits affected areas
Kodagu (Karnataka), Aug 18: Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Saturday visited the flood-hit Kodagu district in the southern state, where hundreds are marooned in villages and towns due to heavy rains.
"At least 1,500 people are stranded in various parts of the district, but the rescue officials have not been able to reach them due to bad weather and landslides. Efforts are being made to rescue them," Kumaraswamy told reporters here.
The Chief Minister earlier in the day held a meeting with district officials on the flood situation in Kodagu, and on heavy rains lashing coastal and south interior districts.
He made an aerial survey of the coffee-growing district, about 270 km from the state capital Bangalore. The district is one of the worst-hit districts in the southern state.
"The officials are trying to airlift people in the district, but the weather has not been very favourable," the Chief Minister said.
Heavy rains, flooding and landslides in the district have claimed six lives so far, a statement from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said.
The state has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of those who lost their lives due to the rains.
The Chief Minister earlier announced Rs 200-crore fund to take up relief measures in the rain-hit districts.
Kumaraswamy, who also visited a relief camp in Madikeri in the hilly district in Western Ghats, told people that the state is taking up rescue and relief operations on a war-footing.
The water being released from Harangi reservoir in the district across Harangi river, one of Cauvery's tributaries, has been flooding several towns and villages in the region.
Over the last 24 hours, Madikeri received a very heavy rainfall measuring up to 30 cm, while the district received an average rain upto 16 cm, according to the weather office.
About 60 Dogra Regiment soldiers and 12 expert naval divers rescued 873 marooned people in the flood-hit district till Friday, where overnight heavy rains caused landslides and inundated low-lying areas at Makkandur.
Another 525 personnel from the fire services, home guards and civil defence teams are working on the rescue operations in the district.
In all, 948 specialised rescuers from various state and central agencies are working in Kodagu district, a CMO statement said.
So far, more than 1,250 people have been rescued and shifted to about 30 relief camps set up across the district, the statement added.
Heavy rains have also been lashing coastal districts of Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada over the past few weeks.
The Bengaluru division of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicts heavy rains will continue over the next two days in the coastal and south interior districts of the state, including Kodagu.
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Two women died, 6 taken ill after ‘consuming’ mango kernel gruel in Odisha
Bhubaneswar/Berhampur/Phulbani, Nov 1: At least two tribal women died and six others fell ill after allegedly consuming mango kernel gruel in Odisha's Kandhamal district, police said on Friday.
Consumption of mango kernel, prepared by boiling the seeds in water, was reported from Mandipanka village in the district's Daringbadi block, an officer said.
While one of the two women (Rasmita Pattamajhi aged 22) died on Thursday night at Mohana community health centre in Gajapati district where she was undergoing treatment after "consuming the gruel", another woman (Runu Majhi aged 29) breathed her last while being taken to MKCG Medical College Hospital in Berhampur, Gadapur sarpanch Kumari Mallick said.
Six others, who fell ill after allegedly consuming the gruel, were admitted to a hospital and their condition was critical, said Dr Subrat Das, a medical officer of the health facility.
"All the six have been admitted to the hospital in a serious condition. We suspected that they fell sick due to food poisoning. The exact cause of the illness will be ascertained after completion of the investigation," he added.
The six were identified as Pravati Patmajhi, Dranglu Patmajhi, Tuni Majhi, Susama Patmajhi, Jita Majhi and Jibanti Majhi, Daringbadi BDO Pritiranjan Ratha said.
Meanwhile, the Odisha government has rejected allegations that tribal people have been consuming mango kernel gruel due to a lack of access to rice under the Public Distribution System (PDS).
Rasmita's husband Anil Pattamajhi alleged that they were denied rice under PDS for the last three months because of which his wife consumed mango kernel.
However, Kandhamal district magistrate-cum-collector Amrit Ruturaj dismissed the allegations, saying the family received rice according to PDS norms. "We are awaiting the postmortem report to determine the facts," the collector added.
Deputy chief minister Pravati Parida, who is also in-charge of the women and child development department said, "It is not a case of malnutrition. Mango kernel is part of their (tribal) regular diet. Sometime, the mango kernels get contaminated and lead to such unfortunate incidents. We have been actively spreading awareness about the risks of food contamination."
Health and family welfare minister Mukesh Mahaling, who ordered a departmental inquiry into the death of two tribal women, said a team from the district headquarters hospital and another local team are at the spot to assess the situation and conduct a detailed probe into the incident.
Mahaling said that the government was waiting for the postmortem report for a confirmation on the cause of the deaths. "People in Kandhamal consume mango kernel. It is common in that region and there also have been reports of health complications linked to it in the past," he said.
The Kandhmal incident reminds a similar tragedy involving mango kernel deaths in Kashipur block of Rayagada district, where at least 20 people died in 2001, and two more succumbed to mango kernel consumption in 2016. Additionally, mango kernel has claimed lives in Laxmipur in Koraput district in 2012 and 2013, as well as in Jharigaon in Nabarangpur district in 2018.
