Union Minister Amit Shah spoke about the disaster caused by landslides triggered by heavy rains in Kerala's Wayanad district, where at least 150 people have lost their lives.
In the upper house of Parliament, Shah claimed that the Government of India had sent early warnings to the Kerala Government on July 23, July 24, and again on July 25. On July 26, it was informed that there would be heavy rains and a possibility of landslides.
More than 200 people were injured after devastating landslides hit Wayanad district on Tuesday. Various government agencies are carrying out rescue operations for missing individuals.
The Home Minister said that NDRF teams were sent to Kerala in advance, but the Kerala government did not evacuate people in time.
"There are several states in the country that have used such warnings for zero-casualty disaster management. We sent a cyclone alert to Odisha, when Naveen Babu's government was in power, seven days in advance, and only one person died, and that too by mistake. We sent a cyclone alert to the Gujarat government, and not even an animal died," said the Union Minister in the Rajya Sabha. He noted that India is among four countries that can provide warnings on natural disasters at least seven days in advance.
Shah said that he does not want to blame anyone here. The Union Minister stated that the Narendra Modi government is standing like a rock with the Kerala government and the people to deal with the Wayanad tragedy.
