Yangon: Myanmar took a group of foreign diplomats early today to the cyclone-hit Irrawaddy delta, in the first such trip since the devastating storm hit the country two weeks ago, a Western diplomat said.

The foreign envoys left around 0600 IST on a trip organised by Myanmar's military government, the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Myanmar's regime says the cyclone left nearly 78,000 people dead and another 56,000 missing, but the government has strictly limited visits by foreigners -- including aid workers -- to the worst-hit regions.

Humanitarian workers, along with the international community, have grown increasingly frustrated with these restrictions, and say millions of survivors are still in need of food, water and shelter.

Aid workers who have been allowed into the delta, the region worst hit by the cyclone, say that bodies still litter the rice paddies, while survivors are crammed into makeshift shelters without enough toilets.
Source : PTI