Centre, state continue to spar over Wayanad relief
Kerala accused Centre of delays in disaster aid for Wayanad landslides; Centre claims the state hasn't submitted necessary assessments.
Two days after lawmakers from Kerala met Union Home Minister Amit Shah to seek financial aid for relief and restoration of landslides-hit Wayanad, the Centre on Friday accused the state government of making “inordinate delays” in submitting the assessment memo regarding the disaster.
In response, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and the Kerala government denied the accusations, further urging the Centre to not use excuses for not approving the financial aid for the disaster-affected residents in the region.
Shah, in response to a petition submitted by Kerala MPs, said the Centre is sensitive to the problems faced by the people in Wayanad as he listed a series of measures taken by the government in the days following the landslides on July 30, which killed over 254 people and flattened three villages.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured the people of Wayanad that the country and the central government will leave no stone unturned in restoring livelihoods in the region, be it homes, schools, road infrastructure or the future of children,” Shah said in its note, a copy of which HT has seen.
“The state government has inordinately delayed in complying with the assurance of PM Narendra Modi and has not sent any assessment memo even after 3.5 months since the incident took place," he added.
Shah said the state government recently submitted an assessment memo, with an estimate of ₹2,219 crore needed for recovery and reconstruction works. The note does not mention when the report was submitted.
The Union home minister said an inter-ministerial central team (IMCT) was constituted to examine the state’s report. “Appropriate central assistance will be provided for recovery and reconstruction,” he added.
Kerala revenue minister K Rajan, in response, denied that the state government made delays in submitting the appropriate memos regarding the landslide.
“Kerala had submitted the first memo regarding the disaster, the extent of its damage and losses, on August 17 itself. The media here had reported incorrectly about that memo and made it seem as if they were the state’s expenses,” he said. “The memo given to the IMCT showed estimated losses at ₹1,201 crore. We then submitted a post-disaster needs assessment report to the Centre. The Kerala chief minister even met the PM and reminded him about the memo submitted on August 17.”
Rajeev further said that the Centre has not accepted any of the state’s demands, including the need to designate the disaster as one of the most severe in nature. “We also asked the Centre to waive off the loans of those affected from nationalised banks. The state has already waived off loans worth ₹6 crore from the Kerala Bank. We have also not got additional assistance for disaster relief unlike states like Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim etc,... the Centre should not find new reasons and excuses for not giving the state the money,” he added.
Similarly, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, said the people of Wayanad do not need excuses from the central and state governments in getting the aid it needs.
“Disasters should not be about politics. Efforts to support the victims of such disasters must prioritise humanity and compassion,” she said in a post on X.
“The people of Wayanad are looking towards the state and central governments with hope, they don’t need excuses, they need urgent help to be able to rebuild their lives with dignity.”
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