Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka leave for Wayanad; death toll in landslide crosses 250

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra left Delhi for Kerala’s Wayanad on Thursday morning to assess the situation following devastating landslides. The death toll has risen to around 250, with hundreds still missing.

Former Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Gandhi, who will be running in the upcoming by-elections, will meet with families affected by the recent landslides. The landslides struck Mundakkai and Churalmala in Wayanad in the early hours of July 30, causing large scale damage. The death toll has reached 256, said state health minister Veena George, India Today reported.

Wayanad landslides latest updates

• An all-party meeting chaired by Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan will be held in Wayanad on Thursday to discuss the ongoing search and rescue operations. State ministers, Wayanad MLAs, and political party leaders will participate in the meeting to coordinate efforts in the landslide-affected areas.

• Kerala governor Arif Mohammed Khan called landslides “colossal tragedy” and expressed sympathy for the affected.

• Construction of a 190-foot-long Bailey bridge is underway to connect the worst-hit areas of Mundakkai and Chooralmala and intensify rescue operations.

• Union home minister Amit Shah alleged that the Kerala government did not act promptly on the central government’s warning about potential landslides.

• Kerala CM Vijayan refuted Amit Shah’s claim, stating that only an orange alert was issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), and the rainfall exceeded predictions.

• Rescue efforts have so far saved 1,386 people, including 528 men, 559 women, and 299 children, who were moved to seven camps after landslides. 201 people were hospitalised, with 90 still undergoing treatment.

• Rescue operations are continuing with the army, navy, and coast guard searching at Attamala, Mundakkai, and Churalmala.

• Authorities are using sniffer dogs and an intelligent buried object detection system to locate people buried under the soil.

• Financial assistance is being mobilised with CM Vijyan called upon everyone to contribute to the Chief Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund (CMDRF). He said that Lulu Group Chairman M A Yusuff Ali, leading industrialist Ravi Pillai, Kalyan Jewellers owner Kalyana Raman, KSFE and the Adani Group have announced financial assistance to the tune of ₹5 crore each.

• Russian president Vladimir Putin sent condolences to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu for the lives lost and injuries caused by the landslides.