Can the Wayanad landslide tragedy be declared as a National Disaster? Minister replies
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said it was a good decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit landslides-hit Wayanad and expressed confidence that once he sees the extent of the devastation firsthand, the prime minister will declare it a national disaster.
Wayanad landslide tragedy: There has been a spate of demands of late to declare the landslide in Wayanad a national disaster. The cacophony of the demand has been led by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the ex-MP from the region. More than 300 people died and many remain unaccounted for after landslides hit the region on July 30 in what is seen as one of the biggest natural disasters to have impacted the southern state.
Speaking during Zero Hour in Parliament, Rahul Gandhi also demanded higher compensation for the people affected. Emphasising the need to declare the Wayanad landslides a national disaster, he said, "I saw it with my own eyes. I visited many different places where the disaster took place.
However, according to the government, there is no provision to declare a natural disaster as a national disaster. As per a 2013 Lok Sabha reply by the then Minister of State for Home, Mullappally Ramachandran, "There is no provision to declare a natural disaster as a national disaster."
The reply further stated that 'Government of India adjudges a calamity of severe nature on case-to-case basis taking into account inter-alia the intensity and magnitude of the calamity, level of relief assistance, the capacity of the State Government to tackle the problem, the alternatives and flexibility available within the plan to provide succour and relief etc. The priority is immediate relief and response assistance in the context of a natural calamity. As such there is no fixed prescribed norms. However, for calamity of a 'severe nature', additional assistance is also considered from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), after following the established procedure.”
He also stated that State Governments concerned are primarily responsible for undertaking necessary rescue & relief measures in the wake of natural disasters.