POLITICS OF DISASTER: THE WAYANAD CASE

"Sometimes it takes a natural disaster to reveal a social disaster.

I remember waking up to the news of the Wayanad disaster. A sense of shock and sadness engulfed me as the death toll kept rising. Hundreds died, thousands injured and misplaced, and a flourishing ecosystem was brought to ruins. The landslides underscored the devastating impact of natural disasters on our communities. As the people of Wayanad rise above this disaster, my heart goes to families of those deceased.

At times like this, it is crucial to move past party lines and come together to serve the people affected. This is not the time to play party politics. Yet, the Union government's decision not to declare it a national disaster has sparked a debate about political bias and the need for consistent disaster management policies. Similar unwillingness on part of the central government was observed on a request to declare the Tamil Nadu floods a national disaster, despite the significant scale of devastation. Disasters are times for empathy, but the Union government seems to be taking its share of electoral revenge over the affected people.

The loss of life and property in Wayanad is staggering. With more than 250 lives lost, thousands injured and entire villages cut off from essential supplies, the situation immediately calls for declaring it as a national disaster. This scale of calamity is unprecedented, with many deceased bodies still to be recovered and a number of bodies yet unidentified. The anguish of the people of Wayanad cannot be put into words. Despite Kerala's commendable efforts to manage the crisis, the scale of the disaster necessitates additional support from the central government.