“PM has given good message by keeping Wayanad his priority but…”: Congress’ Harish Rawat

New Delhi [India], August 10 (ANI): Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the landslide-hit Wayanad district of Kerala, Congress leader Harish Rawat said on Saturday that the PM has given a good message but it would be even better if he declares it a national disaster.

“The matter of Wayanad is a natural disaster and there should not be any politics on it. The PM has given a good message by keeping Wayanad his priority. This message will strengthen even further if he declares it a national disaster. A lot of work needs to be done there,” Rawat said.

“The way it seems, the situation is worse than the Kedarnath calamity. Though thousands of people died in Kedarnath, the size of the disaster in Wayanad is much deeper and more vast,” he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted the central government’s support for Kerala and said that it will be ensured that no work gets hampered due to a lack of money.

PM Modi chaired a review meeting in Wayanad on Saturday after undertaking aerial and on-the-ground surveys of affected sites.

Speaking on occasion, the Prime Minister said that the central government will make all efforts to fulfil all state government requests. He said that as soon as he was informed of the situation in Wayanad when the landslides hit, a Minister of State was sent to the state to take stock of the situation. NDRF, Army and Air Force teams were also deployed for rescue and relief operations.

“I want to assure the families of the deceased that they are not alone. We are all standing with them. The Central Government stand with the Kerala Government and we will ensure no work is hampered due to the lack of money,” he added.

Meanwhile, in response to a request from Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to declare the Wayanad landslides a national disaster, Government of India sources stated on Saturday that “there is no provision to declare a natural disaster as a national disaster.”

According to a 2013 Lok Sabha reply by then Minister of State for Home, Mullappally Ramachandran, “there is no provision to declare a natural disaster as a national disaster.”

Over 300 people lost their lives after massive landslides hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai of Wayanad on July 30.