Kerala Assembly to discuss floods

The Kerala Assembly will meet on Thursday for a day to discuss the worst floods in a century to hit the state killing hundreds, displacing thousands and causing widespread destruction.

The session will start at 9 a.m and will close at noon but given the gravity of the situation the time schedule may be extended.

The Congress-led opposition has urged Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan to see that the treasury and opposition benches be given 150 minutes and all the legislators representing the affected places should be given an hour to speak.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will place before the house a resolution of the government.

In the 140-member Assembly, it will be left to the lone BJP legislator O. Rajagopal to defend the Modi government, which has been accused by the Left and the Congress of giving Kerala a raw deal after the disaster.

The opposition blames faulty dam water management for the unprecedented floods.

They have demanded that a separate account be opened to receive the contributions for rebuilding Kerala. But Vijayan has shot down the idea.

Ever since monsoon rains began lashing Kerala on May 29, a total of 417 people have died. At one point, more than one million people took shelter in relief camps.

--IANS

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