Maharashtra floods: Death toll climbs to 164, highest in Raigad with 71

In all, 1028 villages have been affected in the state due to the heavy rains since July 22. The government has set up 259 relief camps and provided shelter to 7832 people.

At present, 34 rescue teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), four of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), five of the Navy, three of the Army and two of the Coast Guard are doing rescue operations in the state.

The government said that rescue teams have evacuated 2,29,074 people so far, with the highest number of 1,69,968 rescued from Sangli followed by 40,882 from Kolhapur.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, meanwhile, was forced to cancel his visit to the flood-affected Koyana Nagar area in Satara district due to bad weather.

“CM was on his way to Satara but his helicopter was unable to land due to low visibility. Hence, his visit has been cancelled,” said an official from his office. Thackeray was scheduled to conduct an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas in Koyana Nagar in Satara district and to visit a relief camp set up in Zilla Parishad primary school in Koyana Nagar.

On Sunday, Thackeray visited the Chiplun area and said that a relief package would be announced soon. He also said that a separate force on the lines of the NDRF would be set up in vulnerable districts to ensure a quicker response during natural disasters. On Saturday, Thackeray also visited the Taliye village in Raigad and interacted with the affected people.