Wayanad landslides: Amit Shah blames Kerala, says Centre had issued warning to state a week ago

NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that the Centre had warned Kerala about the possibility of landslides on July 23. He said this while speaking in the Rajya Sabha today. He alleged that although the Centre had warned the state about the possibility of landslides a week before the Wayanad landslides, the state did not take necessary action to immediately evacuate people from accident-prone areas.

"The Centre had sent nine NDRF teams to Kerala after heavy rainfall was predicted in the state. What did the Kerala government do? Were the people shifted? And if they were shifted then how did they die? Had they become alert the day the NDRF teams landed, a lot could have been saved. The project of early warning started in 2016 and by 2023, India had the most modern early warning system… There are only 4 countries to predict 7 days in advance and India is one among them," Amit Shah said.

Amit Shah also said that the Narendra Modi government would stand firm with the Kerala government and the people to deal with the disaster in Wayanad.

"Minister George Kurian visited the landslide-hit regions on Tuesday night. The Prime Minister is closely monitoring the situation and has deputed me to visit the affected areas," Amit Shah added.

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that Kerala is likely to receive heavy rainfall till August 2. The IMD stated that a low-pressure trough located from the Kerala coast to the south Gujarat coast, and the strong westerly/ northwesterly winds along the Kerala coast would result in moderate to heavy rains accompanied by thunder and lightning in the state for the next five days.