Marathwada rain toll touches 10

Mumbai: The death toll in Marathwada due to torrential rains since Sunday has climbed to 10 while over 500 people have been displaced and 3,487 villages have been affected by the flood-like situation. The rains have also damaged kharif crops spread across 1.16 million hectares in the region, affecting 1.46 million farmers.
The number of human casualties due to drowning in flood waters climbed from four on Monday to 10 on Tuesday. They include five casualties in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (Sai Borse, Raosaheb Badake, Tukaram Chavan, Devchand Chavan, Santosh Thorat); two casualties in Hingoli (Subhash Savandkar, Chaitanya Thombre); and one each in Beed, Jalna, Latur.
According to the state administration, 1,222 houses were damaged in the rain, while over 100 people were rescued by the administration, including 79 in Hingoli, 13 in Parbhani and 26 in Nanded. Those who were shifted to safer places included 218 people in Hingoli, 165 people in Parbhani, and 120 in Jalna.
Divisional commissioner Dilip Gawade said the 1.16 million hectares of farm land affected by the rain includes 1.13 million hectares of non-irrigated agricultural land, 16,225 hectares of irrigated land and 19,724 hectares of land under horticulture. The numbers are likely to go up further, he said, adding, “We have asked the district administration to complete the loss assessment survey as soon as possible.”
Meanwhile, leaders from the ruling and opposition alliances have begun reaching out to rain-affected people and farmers. BJP minister Girish Mahajan reached Marathwada on Tuesday, while Shiv Sena leader and minister in the Mahayuti government Abdul Sattar and party MLA Santosh Bangar visited villages in Hingoli district. Congress leader Amit Deshmukh visited rain-hit areas in Latur, including by a two-wheeler in some areas. Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA from Parbhani Rahul Patil also visited the rain-hit areas on Tuesday.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and MLA Aaditya Thackeray, leader of opposition in the legislative council Ambadas Danve and party MP Sanjay Raut are likely to visit Marathwada on Wednesday. Thackeray will start his visit from Nanded and end at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.