Landslides in India caused by heavy monsoon rains have struck tea plantations, resulting in at least 93 fatalities on Tuesday. Around 250 individuals have been rescued from the mud and debris, according to officials.
The state of Kerala on the southern coast has been hit hard by incessant rains, leading to blocked roads in the Wayanad district, which is complicating the relief operations.
“93 bodies have been discovered so far,” stated Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan. “This is one of the worst natural disasters our state has faced.”
Additionally, 128 individuals have been hospitalized for treatment following their rescue, he added.
“My condolences go out to all those who have lost loved ones, and my prayers are with those who have been injured,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared on a social media platform.
Wayanad is renowned for its tea estates spread across the hilly terrain, which heavily rely on a large workforce for planting and harvesting.
Multiple estates in the district were impacted by two successive landslides early in the morning while most residents were asleep.
Images from the National Disaster Response Force show rescue teams wading through mud in search of survivors and moving bodies on stretchers from the area.
Houses were covered in brown sludge as cars, corrugated iron, and other debris were scattered around the disaster site from the force of the landslides.
The Indian army has dispatched over 200 soldiers to aid state security forces and firefighters in search and rescue operations in the region.
State excise minister M.B. Rajesh reported that more than 250 people have been rescued thus far, as per The Hindu newspaper.
The families of the victims will receive a compensation payment of $2,400 (200,000 rupees) from the Prime Minister’s office.
More rains and strong winds are predicted in Kerala on Tuesday, as per the state’s disaster management agency.
– ‘Alarming rise in landslides’ –
Rahul Gandhi, an opposition leader in India who previously represented Wayanad in parliament, expressed his sorrow to lawmakers over the devastating impact of the landslides.
“Our country has witnessed a troubling increase in landslides in recent times,” he emphasized. “There is a pressing need for a comprehensive action plan to address the rising frequency of natural disasters.”
Monsoon rains from June to September bring relief from the summer heat and are essential for replenishing water sources in the region.
While crucial for agriculture and the livelihoods of millions of farmers, monsoons also bring destruction in the form of floods and landslides.
The number of fatal floods and landslides has been rising, with experts attributing these occurrences to climate change.
“The frequency of extremely heavy rainfall days has increased,” noted Kartiki Negi from the Indian environmental think tank Climate Trends. “The weather patterns are disturbed, resulting in more extreme events.”
Dam construction, deforestation, and development projects in India have worsened the human impact of these natural disasters.
Intense monsoon storms have caused flooding in Mumbai this month, while lightning strikes in Bihar led to the deaths of at least 10 individuals.
Nearly 500 people lost their lives in Kerala during severe flooding in 2018, the worst in a century for the state.
India’s most devastating landslide in recent history occurred in 1998 when heavy monsoon rains triggered rockfalls, claiming the lives of at least 220 individuals and burying the village of Malpa in the Himalayas.
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