Rahul Gandhi visits flood-ravaged Wayanad, assures displaced people of assistance

Gandhi visited a relief camp at Wayanad and patiently heard the woes of the people who were displaced from their homes following flooding and destruction of their dwellings. (Source: Rahul Gandhi Wayanad/ Twitter)

Gandhi visited relief camps at Kotakkal in Nilambur, Mambad, Edavannapara and the landslide site of Kavalappara in Malappuram district. Gandhi, who was accompanied by Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, could be seen interacting with flood victims in pictures and videos that were shared from his visit to a rescue camp in Bhoothanam and Pothukal on Twitter.

അതിരൂക്ഷമായ വെള്ളപ്പൊക്കത്തിലും മണ്ണിടിച്ചിലിലും എല്ലാം നഷ്‌ടമായ എന്റെ വയനാട്ടുകാരെ കാണുന്നത് അത്യന്തം ഹൃദയഭേദകം തന്നെയാണ്. ഈ പരിതസ്ഥിതി നേരിടുന്നതിന് ആവശ്യമായ എല്ലാ സഹായങ്ങളും ഞങ്ങളുടെ ഭാഗത്തു നിന്ന് ഉണ്ടാകുമെന്ന് ഞാൻ ഉറപ്പ് നൽകുന്നു pic.twitter.com/ErlmLreqWu

— Rahul Gandhi – Wayanad (@RGWayanadOffice) August 11, 2019

Gandhi also visited Kavalappara, a 10-acre settlement near Nilambur in Malappuram, where a hill came down Thursday night following incessant rain and buried over a dozen houses and at least 46 people. On Twitter, Gandhi further wrote: “I visited Kavalapara, the site of the landslide in Bhoothanam. Several people are still trapped and rescue operations are underway but more help is required immediately.”

ഭൂതാനത്തിൽ അതിരൂക്ഷമായ മണ്ണിടിച്ചിൽ ഉണ്ടായ കവളപ്പാറ ഞാൻ സന്ദർശിച്ചു. നിരവധി ആളുകൾ ഇപ്പോഴും അവിടെ കുടുങ്ങിക്കിടക്കുകയാണ്, രക്ഷാപ്രവർത്തനങ്ങൾ നടക്കുന്നുണ്ടെങ്കിലും കൂടുതൽ സഹായം അടിയന്തരമായി ആവശ്യമാണ്. pic.twitter.com/3wSywpyRV0

— Rahul Gandhi – Wayanad (@RGWayanadOffice) August 11, 2019

Rescue workers had managed to reach the village in Malappuram only on Saturday noon. A full-fledged search operation could not be conducted due to rain and landslides along the way.

Gandhi had said he had spoken to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the District Collector of Wayanad and Congress workers in the state regarding the flood situation in his constituency.

Gandhi, who won by a record margin from Wayanad in the April Lok Sabha elections, earlier tweeted that he would visit relief camps across Wayanad and review relief measures with state government officials.

Gandhi had said he had spoken to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the District Collector of Wayanad and Congress workers in the state regarding the flood situation in his constituency. (Source: Rahul Gandhi Wayanad/ Twitter)

“For the next few days, I will be based in my Lok Sabha constituency, #Wayanad that has been ravaged by floods. I will be visiting relief camps across Wayanad and reviewing relief measures with District & State officials,” he tweeted.

On Friday, after reaching out to the Prime Minister, Gandhi said, “PM Modi has assured any assistance required to mitigate the effects of the disaster.”

The pounding rains in Kerala meanwhile have claimed 67 lives and displaced over 2.27 lakh people who are being sheltered in relief camps. The current situation is being termed as a deja-vu moment for the state which had faced a similar situation last year.