National news
7 August
Sandeep Dhand Ludhiana
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has called on the government to declare the recent calamity in Kerala’s Wayanad district as a natural disaster. During the Shifarkal session in the Lok Sabha, he demanded more compensation for the affected individuals, stating that he witnessed the devastation firsthand.
“I have seen the devastation with my own eyes. I visited many disaster sites. In some cases, entire families have been wiped out; in others, only one person or a child has survived,” said Gandhi. He expressed his gratitude to those who helped during the calamity and appreciated the cooperation extended by the governments of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the central forces, including the army.
So far, more than 200 people have been killed, and a large number are missing, with fears that the death toll could reach 400. Gandhi highlighted that many crucial roads have been cut off due to landslides, creating a significant crisis.
He appealed to the government to provide a large-scale rehabilitation package and to create disaster-resilient infrastructure to better handle such calamities in the future.