Hyderabad:
Unseasonal rains in Andhra Pradesh have wreaked more havoc than tropical storm Cyclone Phailin, which pounded the east coast two weeks ago.
A total of 53 people have died in the state so far, with at least three farmers committing suicide after the incessant rains submerged thousands of acres of land, destroying standing crops worth crores.
The three suicides have been reported from Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar and Nizamabad districts.
Ailu Mallesh was found dead on Sunday in Nalgonda, which along with Srikakulam received the heaviest downpour.
His 22-year-old wife Chandrakala told NDTV that they had celebrated the first birthday of their son Manoj a few days ago, happy in the hope that their cotton crop was looking good.
Last week's rain changed all that. Dejected at losing his crop, the 28-year-old drank pesticide.
Mallesh had a huge debt, even after having sold everything he owned, including his auto-rickshaw to grow cotton and lentil at seven acres of land he had leased.
Most farmers in Nalgonda are at the mercy of the rain gods. Tragically, it rained more than they ever wanted.
The incessant rains destroyed cotton crop over almost 6 lakh hectares of land, followed by paddy sown in nearly 5 lakh hectares. Besides, nearly 2000 cattle died and over 1400 irrigation tanks were breached, destroying the agricultural infrastructure in the state.
Nearly 5200 villages in 16 districts have been affected, with over 42,000 houses damaged and over two lakh people evacuated to relief camps.
Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy toured Prakasam and Guntur districts on Monday. Other leaders like the Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu, YSR Congress leader Vijayamma, union minister Chiranjeevi and several Telangana Rashtriya Samithi legislators have also visited the affected areas.