Rains pound South India; Kerala worst hit with 57 dead

The flood situation in South India continued to remain grim on Saturday, with Kerala and Karnataka being the worst hit - as 83 people have so far lost their lives in both states.

In Kerala, the toll climbed to 57 on Saturday even as more than 1.65 lakh people have been displaced from their homes.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in a tweet that "57 lives have been lost. There are now 1,318 flood relief camps operating across the state. These camps host 1,65,519 persons from 46,400 families".

He said 80 landslides had occurred in eight districts in the last three days.

The maximum deaths were reported from Malappuram district-- 19, while 14 people lost their lives in Kozhikode and 10 in Wayanad.

Official sources said 198 houses were fully damaged and 2303 partially.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is likely to visit his constituency--Wayanad, which is among the worst affected, tomorrow to get first hand information about the rain havoc.

Many people are still feared trapped under debris following major landslides that hit Kavalappara in Malappuram and Puthumala in Meppadi in Wayanad