Thiruvananthapuram, India, Aug 16, 2018 / 15:24 pm
After at least 73 people were killed in floods caused by monsoon rains in India's Kerala state, Caritas India and local Catholic groups are assisting victims of the torrent with relief materials.
More than 85,000 people in the southern Indian state have been displaced by the flooding since Aug. 9, which has also caused landslides.
"The Catholic Church is already out in the field through … Caritas India," read an Aug. 15 statement from the Indian bishops' conference.
"Our local Bishops, Clergy, Religious Sisters and lay volunteers are also involved in relief and succour operations. In different dioceses, Church authorities have opened church schools and other institutions to the displaced people, and are distributing food, clothes and other relief materials. Many parishes, schools and other Church institutions have become the centres of aid and assistance to people in need."