The visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the landslides-devastated villages in Wayanad on Saturday to evaluate the relief and rehabilitation operations and connect with survivors gave a glimmer of hope to the State government to initiate comprehensive rehabilitation in the region.
The fact that the Prime Minister, along with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, Union Minister Suresh Gopi, and other key government officials, conducted an aerial survey and visited relief camps sheltering survivors and those receiving treatment at a hospital, revealed that they had cast aside their political differences to rebuild the shattered lives of the residents affected by the massive landslides that hit Meppadi on July 30.
Defying protocol, Mr. Modi also extended his visit to Wayanad by more than two-and-a-half hours than the scheduled time.
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While the CPI(M) State leadership is yet to officially comment on Mr. Modi’s visit, Minister for Tourism and Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas, who has been involved in the relief operations, reacted positively to the day’s developments.
The Prime Minister encouraged the State government to advance with the rehabilitation initiatives, assuring that the Centre would extend full financial support.
Previously, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi thanked Mr. Modi for visiting Wayanad to personally take stock of the tragedy. “This is a good decision. I am confident that once the Prime Minister sees the extent of the devastation first-hand, he will declare it a national disaster, “ he posted on X (formerly Twitter).
BJP State president K. Surendran said Mr. Modi’s visit to Wayanad was both timely and impactful. “During this highly productive visit, he reassured us that funds will not be an issue and that the Central government will fully support Wayanad. We express our heartfelt gratitude for his unwavering affection for Kerala and for consistently standing with us in times of crisis. “
However, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh took to X with a swiping comment over Mr. Modi’ s visit, “It is good that the non-biological PM is in Wayanad today. It was a devastating tragedy. After this, he is scheduled to visit Ukraine to stop the war once again. Hopefully, he will find the time and the inclination before then to also visit Manipur - which has been experiencing so much pain, anguish, and agony for over 15 months now.”
However, many BJP supporters asked Mr. Ramesh to stop his backhanded compliment and behave decently, and many also blamed the Congress government at the Centre for the Wayanad landslides as it had rejected the Madhav Gadgil panel report.
