KOCHI: More than 300 people have been killed in the Indian state of Keralaby the worst flooding to hit the region in a century, authorities saidFriday, as troop reinforcements stepped up rescue efforts.

The state — a key international tourist draw with its tropical mountainsand beaches — has been battered by record monsoon rainfall in recent daysand is “facing the worst flood in 100 years”, chief minister PinarayiVijayan said.

In a Twitter statement released by his office, he said there had been “324lives lost”, a tripling of the death toll in the last 24 hours.

Vijayan added that 223,139 people have been moved to more than 1,500 reliefcamps.

With thousands still trapped, power and communication lines down and freshalerts of further torrential rain, authorities warned of even more troubleahead.

More than 30 military helicopters and 320 boats are attempting rescuesacross Kerala.

Extra troops have been sent in and local fishermen have also joined theoperation with their boats.

People all over the state of 33 million people have made panic-strickenappeals on social media for help, saying they cannot get through to rescueservices.

India´s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was set to arrive in the strickenstate on Friday night. – APP/AFP