Kerala floods: Andhra Pradesh IAS officers donate 1 day salary

IAS officers in Andhra Pradesh have pledged to donate their one day's salary to Kerala, which has been reeling under severe floods, the worst in 100 years. According to state disaster management authority, 197 people have lost their lives in Kerala since August 8 due to rains and landslides, while over 3.14 lakh people have been moved to relief camps.

IAS Officers Association of Andhra Pradesh notes with deep concern and empathy the unprecedented havoc and hardship being faced by the people of Kerala in the wake of the worst ever floods facing the state, Shashi Bhushan Kumar, the general secretary of the officers' body, said.

"We stand as one with the people of Kerala and the countless members of civil and military administrations as well as the civil society who are working tirelessly to provide rescue, relief, and rehabilitation to the flood-affected people," he said.

"As a token of our shared pain with the people of Kerala, the IAS Officers Association of AP resolves to contribute one day's salary of its members to the Kerala CM Relief Fund," Kumar added.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had yesterday spoken to his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan about the situation in the rain-ravaged state and assured him of providing all possible help.

The Andhra Pradesh government has announced a financial assistance of Rs 10 crore to rain-ravaged Kerala.

Andhra Pradesh has also dispatched a special rescue team comprising 66 disaster response and fire services personnel, a district fire officer, 12 motorboats and other equipment to Kerala.