SRINAGAR: The flash floods in Kashmir have caused massive damage to property and the bumper crop estimated at Rs. 200 crore and officials reckon it is a huge task to rehabilitate lakhs of people who have lost their homes. But the threat of flood has now receded.

Chief Secretary C. Phonsog told The Hindu that there was visible improvement in the situation. But the level of water in Jhelum in Srinagar was still up.

The Srinagar-Jammu highway was also opened for traffic on Wednesday though only stranded vehicles were allowed to move. He said that massive damage had been caused to property and crop, particularly in South Kashmir. Around 444 villages were under water in Kashmir and 155 in Jammu. He said over 93,000 hectares of land with standing crop were also under water.

263 rescued

According Mr. Phonsog, 307 houses were completely damaged and 4,399 were partially damaged in Kashmir and 95 partially damaged in Jammu.

He said 258 boats were pressed into service and 125 medical teams deployed in the affected areas.

The administration, he said, rescued 263 people caught in the floods and evacuated 8,615. "But these are preliminary figures and the process of collecting information is on."

The Chief Secretary said that the Union Government had been asked to send a high-level team to assess the extensive damage in the State.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad also visited Jammu and conducted an aerial survey of flood-hit areas with his Cabinet colleagues.

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