Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced on Thursday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit landslide-affected areas in Wayanad on August 10. Speaking at a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram, Vijayan revealed that the state government has urged the central authorities to classify the disaster as a national emergency and severe calamity. On July 30, massive landslides struck Chooralmala and Mundakkai in Wayanad, resulting in widespread devastation. "In this regard, the central government has appointed a nine-member committee to submit a report. The committee chairman visited today and we hope to receive central assistance for rehabilitation," the Chief Minister said. "We expect the Prime Minister to understand the situation firsthand and adopt a favourable stance," he added.
The Chief Minister reported that post-mortem procedures for 420 bodies have been completed in Wayanad so far and assured that search operations will persist. "Officially, 225 deaths have been confirmed. The body parts of 195 individuals have been found in various locations. DNA samples of these body parts have been sent for testing. The search is still ongoing. Post-mortems have been conducted on 420 bodies, 178 bodies have been handed over to relatives, and 233 burials have taken place," he said.