Even as the rescue and relief operations continue in full swing in landslides-hit Wayanad, a political war of words erupted on Wednesday after Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that the Centre had issued advance warning to Kerala government regarding a possible natural disaster in the district due to heavy rains.
Shah said in Rajya Sabha that the state government did not heed to the early warning issued seven days ahead of the July 30 landslides. The home minister also alleged that the state government did not get alerted even by the arrival of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) battalions.
"Nine NDRF battalions were dispatched on July 23 itself and three more were sent on July 30," Shah said.
The losses could have been minimised if the Kerala government had got itself alerted and acted as soon as the NDRF teams landed in the state, he added.
Shah later reiterated his claim in the Lok Sabha, saying the Centre had sent eight teams of the NDRF on July 23 to assist the Kerala government in any eventuality of a disaster.
"When the landslides struck Wayanad, the NDRF teams got the green signal from the collector and relief operations were launched immediately," he said.
Shah, however, asserted that the Centre would provide every possible help to the state government in the rescue, relief and rehabilitation operations.
"This is the time to stand like a rock with Wayanad and the Modi government is committed to this," he said.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, meanwhile, termed Shah’s claims as “baseless” and said the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had only issued an orange alert in Wayanad ahead of the landslides.
"In the disaster areas, an orange alert was in place, with the IMD warning that rainfall would be between 115 and 204 mm. However, the actual rainfall was much higher,” he said.
Addressing a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram, the chief minister said the area received 200 mm of rain in the first 24 hours and 372 mm in the next 24 hours, totaling 572 mm in 48 hours. This far exceeded the initial warning, he added.
“The area had never been on red alert before the disaster. However, after the incident, a red alert was issued at six o'clock in the morning (of July 30) after the landslides occurred," Vijayan said.
The chief minister further claimed that the Central Water Commission, which is responsible for issuing flood warnings, had not issued any warnings for either Iruvazhinji Puzha or Chaliyar rivers flowing through the affected areas.
"I am not blaming anyone. This is not the time for blame games. But, the Centre needs to understand that climate change has led to significant alterations in our environment and that we need to take proactive steps to address and adapt to these changes,” he said.
