Kochi,17/10: The death toll due to heavy rains and landslides in Kerala has risen to 21 on Sunday. Of these, 13 people died in Kottayam and 8 people died in Idukki. This information has been given by the state government. Rescue work is going on continuously in the landslide affected area. The army, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), police and fire forces as well as local people launched rescue operations on Sunday morning in Kootikal and Kokkayar panchayat areas where over 12 people are missing due to several landslides coupled with heavy rains since Saturday.
Rescue teams recovered four more bodies from Cuttikkal on Sunday morning, raising the death toll to 15, officials said. The bodies have not yet been identified. The bodies of two women and a child were recovered from Kootikal on Saturday. State Revenue Minister K Rajan, who was in Kottayam to coordinate the rescue efforts, said government agencies were also investigating whether more people were trapped under the debris.