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(With inputs from agency)

Kerala University has postponed all exams for graduate courses scheduled till August 23.*Kerala government has rescheduled Onam vacation for schools as the flood situation in the state has worsened. The holiday will be from August 17 to August 29.* Kochi airport will remain closed till August 26 as water level inside the airport complex started rising on Thursday due to continuous rain. The airport was earlier expected to open on Saturday (August 18).Taking note of the grim flood situation in Kerala, Supreme Court has ordered the disaster management panel of the Mullaperiyar dam to urgently decide on lowering the water level by three feet from existing 142 feet to 139 feet.The Centre has decided to scale up flood rescue and relief operations in Kerala by deploying additional manpower and equipment. Cabinet secretary P K Sinha on Thursday chaired a meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) to review the prevailing flood situation and make further arrangements for continued and scaled up assistance to the state.* Congress chief Rahul Gandhi spoke to PM Narendra Modi on phone and requested him to "massively increase" deployment of Army and Navy personnel for rescue and relief operations. On Twitter, Gandhi also made an appeal to the people for help by contributing to the chief minister's relief fund.* Earlier today, the Centre announced dispatching of NDRF teams to Kerala for rescue operations. Home Minister Rajnath Singh communicated to Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan over a telephonic conversation that the Centre is rushing additional NDRF teams to Kerala. "The centre is committed to providing all possible assistance. I am in constant touch with Kerala CM," said HM Rajnath Singh.Kerala floods live updates* After the intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and HM Rajnath Singh yesterday, the mounting tension between Kerala and Tamil Nadu over the rising water level in Mullaperiyar Dam and its outflow was resolved. Kerala wanted the outflow and the inflow of the water through the sluice gates of the dam to be the same.*On the seventh day of Indian Navy’s ‘Operation Madad’, the Southern Naval Command deployed 21 rescue and diving teams with Gemini boats intensifying its rescue operations in the state. Nearly two lakh people have been living in relief camps while 14 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), comprising 399 rescuers and 34 boats, were deployed in the state.* National Disaster Response Force has so far evacuated 926 persons to safer place at Pathamithitta, Kozzhikode, Ernakulam, Thrissur & Alappuzha. While the death toll has reached 79.*The public transport system has collapsed in many parts of central Kerala with the Southern Railways and Kochi Metro today suspending their operations due to floods. The Cochin International Airport has suspended all flight operations till Saturday. Authorities have diverted all incoming and outgoing flights to Thiruvananthapuram or Kozhikode.*Tourism which is a high revenue industry in Kerala has been severely hit. According to Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) 70-80% cancellations have taken place in Idukki, Munnar , Kumarakkom, which are among the most preferred destinations by domestic and international tourists.*The downpour also affected ‘The Champion's Boat League’ which features Kerala’s famed snake boat race called 'Chundan Vallams'.*Another casualty of the incessant rains is the blooming of 'Neelakurinji' flower in the hills of Munnar, a once in 12 year occurrence which attracts large number of tourists. The blossoming of the flower was also mentioned by PM Modi in his Independence Day speech yesterday.*The loss suffered by tea, coffee, cardamom and rubber planters due to the rains has been pegged at Rs 600 crore. The estimated loss of tea plantations alone was between Rs 150 crore to Rs 200 crore. Approximately 100 acre has been lost in landslides and flooding of tea fields in Waynad.*Over Rs.320 crore has been released by the Centre to Kerala government as calamity relief fund during 2018-19. The balance available in the State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) account as on April 1, 2018 as reported by the state Accountant General Rs 348.45 crore, another home ministry said.