Heavy rains in Kerala as IMD issues orange alert in two districts

Heavy rains continued to lash several parts of Kerala as the India Meteorological Department IMD on Thursday issued an orange alert for two districts of the state reported the PTIThe IMD sounded orange alerts in Kozhikode and Wayanad districts of the state for the dayIt said that due to a cyclonic circulation over the Southeast Arabian Sea and South Kerala coast the state would receive heavy rainfall between August 15 to 19The IMD also issued yellow alerts in the remaining 12 districts of Kerala for the dayAn orange alert means very heavy rain 6 cm to 20 cm and a yellow alert means heavy rainfall between 6 to 11 cmThe IMD also issued an orange alert in Pathanamthitta and Idukki districts for FridayIt warned against going fishing in the Kerala Lakshadweep Karnataka coastal region from August 15 to 19 citing chances of strong winds and bad weather conditionsKerala CM Vijayan highlights impact of Wayanad landslides in IDay speechMeanwhile Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan acknowledged the impact of the recent landslides that hit Wayanad and criticised the lack of a precise disaster warning system in the country while addressing the state on the occasion of 78th Independence Day celebrations in Thiruvananthapuram reported the ANIDuring his address on Thursday the Kerala CM also emphasised collective efforts for the overall resilience and recovery of the state While expressing sorrow the Chief Minister urged citizens to move beyond their grief and focus on collective resilience and recovery as per the ANIToday we celebrate Indias 78th Independence Day in an atmosphere of profound sorrow due to the Wayanad disaster This grief is not limited to Kerala alone the entire nation shares in this pain However we cannot afford to be paralyzed by sorrow We must rise above the adversity and focus on collective efforts for the overall resilience and recovery of our state he said according to the PTIThe Chief Minister said that the need for precise predictions has been demonstrated by numerous previous experiences He also urged the country to take necessary steps to rise to that level of preparednessEven though we boast of achievements in science and technology its troubling that even in the 21st century our country still struggles to accurately predict natural disasters and establish effective defences to protect lives and property The need for precise predictions rather than general warnings has been demonstrated by numerous experiences worldwide CM Vijayan said the news agency reported on Thursdaywith PTI and ANI inputs