On Friday, Kerala’s Higher Education Department Minister R Bindu announced that the National Service Scheme (NSS) will volunteer to construct houses for 150 families who lost their homes due to the recent landslides in Wayanad. Speaking to reporters in Thrissur, Minister Bindu highlighted this as one of the largest volunteering activities undertaken by the NSS, which previously set a precedent in the service sector by providing ‘love homes’ to homeless schoolmates.
Two massive landslides hit Wayanad’s Chooralmala and Mundakkai on July 30, causing widespread devastation, and loss of lives and property in the region. Minister Bindu stated that the construction of houses will be coordinated with various cells of the State National Service Scheme.
“NSS Units under NSS cells of Kerala Universities, Higher Secondary, Vocational Higher Secondary, Technical Education Department, ITI, and NSS Ex Program Coordinators and State Officers will participate in this charity mission,” Minister Bindu said. She also noted the involvement of NSS/NCC cadres in the initial relief operations on the day of the incident.
In addition to housing, the NSS will engage in long-term relief work in disaster areas. This includes providing expert counseling to disaster victims to help them overcome mental trauma and launching a ‘Back to School, Back to College’ campaign to support students returning to normal life in the affected areas.
Kerala Health Minister Veena George provided an update on the situation, stating that post-mortem procedures for 199 bodies have been conducted so far in Wayanad. In a Facebook post, Minister George mentioned that DNA samples from 130 body parts were also taken. She added that ICUs are ready in hospitals in Wayanad to provide intensive care to those rescued, with additional support from Manjeri Medical College and Kozhikode Medical College on standby.
In ongoing rescue operations, the Indian Army found four individuals alive in the rubble, including two men and two women stranded in Padavetti Kunnu in Wayanad. The Army reported that one of the rescued women received necessary medical attention for leg difficulties. Brigadier Arjun Segan, Commandant of the Para Regimental Training Centre, noted that rescue operations are continuing with additional support from sniffer dogs, and local residents are now assisting due to their knowledge of the area.
The rescue and relief efforts, coordinated by the Army, NDRF, SDRF, and civil administration, are ongoing at multiple locations to ensure the quick evacuation of stranded people and the provision of basic amenities and medical assistance.
The regional meteorological department has issued a yellow alert for heavy rains in five districts, including Wayanad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod.
