- विज्ञापन -
Wayanad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a review meeting on Saturday after undertaking an aerial and on-the-ground survey of affected sites in Wayanad.
Over 300 people lost their lives after massive landslides hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai of Wayanad on July 30.
The meeting was attended by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Governor Arif Muhammed Khan, Union Minister Suresh Gopi, State Ministers A Rajan, AK Saseendran, PA Mohammed Riyas, and Kerala ADGP (law and order) MR Ajith Kumar.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister assured all support to the state and survivors in rehabilitation. He also emphasised that the central government will make all efforts to fulfil all state government requests.
PM Modi said that as soon as he was informed of the situation in Wayanad when the landslides hit, a Minister of State was sent to the state to take stock of the situation. Also, NDRF, Army and Air Force teams were deployed for rescue and relief operations.
The Prime Minister said that his heart felt heavy as he visited the landslide-hit sites and also when he met the survivors at the relief camp. He highlighted the importance of collective efforts in rehabilitation.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi visited a relief camp and met survivors of landslides in Wayanad. The Prime Minister interacted with the survivors at the camp.
PM undertook an aerial survey of the landslide-affected areas in Wayanad before physically visiting the location of the disaster to review relief and rehabilitation efforts in the region.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Governor Arif Muhammed Khan and Union Minister Suresh Gopi accompanied the Prime Minister in the helicopter.
As the Prime Minister undertook an on-the-ground review of the affected sites, he was briefed on the situation by Kerala ADGP (law and order) MR Ajith Kumar. PM Modi is expected to chair a review meeting with the Chief Minister and officials later in the day.
The state has requested the central government to declare this as a national disaster and a severe calamity. An Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) has been constituted by the Central Government to visit the affected areas of the State and review the situation. The team is visiting the affected areas from August 8 to August 10.
Kerala government has assured immediate assistance to those affected by the landslides, helping them relocate to another place, as per the Chief Minister’s Office.
All those affected in Mundakkai and Chooralmala areas will receive this assistance. An adult member from families who have lost their livelihood will receive a daily allowance of Rs. 300. This benefit will be available for up to two individuals per family.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on visit to the landslide-affected areas in Wayanad, Kerala. Earlier in morning he arrived at Kannur Airport by a special plane at 11 am. From Kannur, Modi left for Wayanad at 11:15 am by an Indian Air Force helicopter.
On the way, he conducted an aerial survey of the landslide-affected villages of Choorlamala, Mundakkai and Punchirimattam. Modi saw the place from where the devastation started on the night of July 30. The Iruvazhinji Puzha river also starts from this place.
Modi’s helicopter landed at a school campus in Kalpetta, Wayanad. He went to the landslide-affected areas by road. Modi took information about the rescue operation there. He will also meet the landslide victims and survivors in relief camps and hospitals.
After this, the Prime Minister will hold a meeting with the officials, where he will be informed about the accident and rescue operation. Union Minister Suresh Gopi has also gone to Wayanad with the PM.
PM Modi was received at the airport by Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and top Central and state government officials.
PM Modi Wayanad Visit schedule
At Wayanad, Modi will visit patients at the hospitals and a few relief camps where over 10,700 people hit by the landslides are sheltered. After that, Modi will chair a review meeting where Khan, Vijayan and other officials will take part.
Following this, the Prime Minister will return to Kannur airport by around 3.30 p.m. and then depart for New Delhi. PM Modi’s visit comes at a time when his government took stock of the situation and immediately sprung into action through the deployment of more than 1,200 rescuers of NDRF, Army, Air Force, Navy, Fire services, Civil Defence, among others for rescue and relief operation.
More than 100 ambulances, along with doctors, and other medical staff were deployed for medical support and treatment. The Indian Army erected a 190-foot Bailey bridge in Wayanad, which has been crucial in facilitating the movement of heavy machinery and ambulances.
Remarkably, construction of this bridge was completed in just 71 hours, significantly enhancing the rescue operations by allowing heavy vehicles and machinery to be mobilised to rescue around 200 people who were stranded due to damage to the bridge.
