— PHOTO: PTI

"WE'LL TAKE CARE:" Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meets flood-affected people at a relief camp in Nanded, Maharashtra, on Friday as Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh looks on.

MUMBAI: The official death toll in Maharashtra due to heavy rains and floods on Friday jumped to 255 from Thursday's 144 as the flood-threatened towns of Pandharpur, Kolhapur and Sangli remained on high alert and had no respite from high water levels.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs. 1 lakh to the next of kin from the Prime Minister's Relief Fund. He made the announcement in Nanded after visiting the flood-affected areas and talking to the affected persons in relief camps.

Dr. Singh also announced the grant of Rs. 400 crore to the flood-ravaged State. A State Government spokesperson said in Mumbai that Rs. 220 crore would come from the Calamity Relief Fund and Rs. 180 crore from the National Calamity Contingency Fund.

The rise in the number of dead is being attributed to confirmation of the death of many a missing person and late arrival of casualty reports in district headquarters.

Besides, 44 persons died in the Konkan region because of heavy downpour and the resultant house collapses and landslips. Besides, several people also got washed away.

Pandharpur town and 90 villages around it remained on high alert following the release of 3.23 cusecs water from several reservoirs in the Bheema valley. With no let-up in Sangli town continued to face the danger of the water levels being over three feet above the danger mark, neighbouring Kolhapur and Shirola taluka turned critical.

Rivers in spate

Rivers Krishna and Panchganga, which are already in spate, meet here. The situation worsened for this part of the State on Thursday night because of heavy rainfall, 221 mm in upstream Mahabaleshwar.

The irrigation authorities could balance the inflow and outflow of water at 2.5 lakh cusecs in Jayakwadi reservoir fed by the Godavari. This helped in the improvement of the condition of Nanded. The reservoir continues to be the cause for concern as it is filled to the brim, 97 per cent.

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