Wayanad landslide: Centre denies fund; LDF, UDF call for hartal on Nov 19

The United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) called for a “hartal” on November 19 to protest against the Centre’s decision not to declare the landslides in the Kerala district as a national disaster and provide relief.

As part of the hartal, shops and institutions have been called to be closed from 6 am to 6 pm, Manirama Online reported.

The disaster, which struck on July 30, devastated large parts of three villages – Punchirimattam, Chooralmala, and Mundakkai – along with sections of Attamala in Wayanad. As per the government, the deadly disaster claimed 231 lives, while 47 people are still missing.

Both fronts – the UDF and the LDF – called for the hartal separately, Onmanorama reported on Friday. It stated that the UDF will protest against the central and state governments, and the LDF will agitate against the Centre’s non-allocation of funds to the landslide victims.

The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) or the “left front” is the alliance of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India (CPI). The United Democratic Front (UDF), led by the Congress, is currently in the Opposition in Kerala.

The Congress slammed the Centre for its lack of assistance for Wayanad, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) backed the central government’s decision.

What’s the issue?

According to reports, Kerala has requested three things from the Centre: immediate additional relief assistance, the writing off of affected families’ loans, and the notification of the Meppadi landslide as a disaster of a ‘severe nature’.

A political row erupted in Kerala after the central government wrote a letter to the state, saying that under the existing guidelines of the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), there is no provision to declare any calamity a ‘national disaster’.

Kerala Finance Minister KN Balagopal criticised the Centre’s decision by calling it “a clear case of severe discrimination and injustice towards the state”. He also claimed that the central government was neglecting the state’s request for aid to rehabilitate the Wayanad disaster victims.

“The Centre’s stance of neglect towards providing any aid for the Wayanad disaster victims is a blatant injustice to the people of Kerala,” Balagopal was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

Kerala’s Revenue Minister K Rajan also lashed out at the Centre for withholding relief funds for the Wayanad landslide survivors. Rajan reportedly said that the state government requested the Centre to declare the landslide, that hit the Chooralmala and Mundakai regions in Wayanad, a national disaster, but they have not taken any action on it and were “intentionally neglecting the state”.

Leader of Opposition in the state assembly VD Satheesan also attacked the Centre and pointed out that the state has demanded a special financial package for the victims.

Why is UDF protesting against the state?

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief and Kannur MP K Sudhakaran said a sum of ₹394 crore remains unutilized in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), highlighting a significant failure on the part of the state government. 

“This amount should be utilised without delay, as many disaster victims are still waiting for the basic financial assistance promised by the state,” he was quoted by PTI as saying.

What BJP says: ‘Delay in central assistance due to…’

BJP leader V Muraleedharan alleged that the delay in central assistance for Wayanad is due to Kerala’s “failure” to submit a clear plan. He contended that the Centre cannot allocate funds based on guesswork.

Muraleedharan urged the Kerala government to prepare specific project proposals, similar to the ones submitted by states like Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.

The BJP leader also reiterated that the decision not to declare the Wayanad landslide a national disaster was in line with existing norms, and noted that the same position was taken when Congress leader Mullappally Ramachandran was the Union Minister.

‘State govt has funds in SDRF’

The Centre on Friday informed the Kerala High Court that money for Wayanad rehabilitation was available in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and information regarding the allocation of any additional funds for it will be conveyed by the end of the month.

The submission from the central government came during the hearing of a plea initiated by the high court for the prevention and management of natural disasters in the state in the wake of the landslides that devastated three villages in Wayanad, Kerala.

Meanwhile, Kerala’s BJP president, K Surendran, also blamed the state government for the delay. “The state government has sufficient funds to provide relief,” he said. Surendran also pointed out that the decision not to declare the disaster a national disaster was made by the Manmohan Singh government.

However, State Revenue Minister K Rajan dismissed the Union government’s claim that funds were available in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF and termed it as “misleading”. He said that the state would not accept the Centre’s stance and would continue to fight for Kerala’s rightful claims.