Kerala Floods: Cochin Airport to Resume Operation From August 29

Earlier, airport authorities had said that operations will resume its operations from August 26.

New Delhi: The Cochin International Airport on Wednesday again announced that it will resume its operations on August 29. The airport was closed from August 15 due to the flooding and torrential rains. Earlier on Tuesday, the airport had said that it would resume operations on August 26.

The airport was closed when various dams in Idukki district opened their sluice gates in the wake of torrential rains. The airport has suffered an estimated loss of over Rs 220 crore due to the recent floods.

Officials said the opening had been put off by three days as 90 percent of the staff had been affected by Kerala’s worst flooding in a century and they needed to report to work.

Airport officials said the runway, taxi bay, duty-free shops and other areas of international and domestic terminals were submerged, causing damage to electrical equipment including runway lights.

The airport was first closed on August 9, for a few hours, and then on August 15. The Cochin airport is one of three airports in Kerala and also the busiest.

The toll rose to 231 with the recovery of eight more bodies from different parts today while over 14.50 lakh people are taking shelter in more than 3,200 relief camps a fortnight after a murderous monsoon rampaged through the state in its second spell that began on August 8, the government said.

In the past 14 years, India has refused aid from Russia, US, and Japan for Uttarakhand floods in 2013, and for the Kashmir earthquake in 2005 and floods in Kashmir in 2014.