• Source:JND
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Centre sounded warning for landslides and potential loss of lives in Kerala but the state government ignored them. Shah said nine NDRF teams were rushed to Kerala in advance but the Kerala government failed to evacuate people in time.

Speaking in Rajya Sabha, Shah said nine battalions of NDRF were dispatched to Kerala on July 23, and three more on July 30 owing to the landslide warning in the state.

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"India is among four countries that can provide warning on natural disasters at least seven days in advance," he said in the upper house.

Chiding Pinarayi Vijayan-led Kerala government, Shah said the loss of lives in Wayanad could have been minimised had the former taken the alert seriously.

“Several states in the country have used such warnings for effective disaster management with zero casualties. We sent a cyclone alert to Odisha under Naveen Babu's government seven days in advance, and only one person died, and that was an accident. We sent a cyclone alert to Gujarat, and not even an animal died,” he said.

Assuring people in calamity-hit areas, he said the Narendra Modi govt was standing like a rock with the Kerala govt and the people to deal with the Wayanad tragedy.

Over 158 people have so far been killed since devastating landslides hit Wayanad district on Tuesday.

The landslides, which struck various hilly areas near Meppadi in Wayanad district early Tuesday, have left behind massive trails of destruction. Over 1,200 rescue workers from the Indian Army, DSC centre, Territorial Army, NDRF, Indian Navy and the IAF have been deployed to expedite the rescue operation.

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Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan conducted review meetings to take stock of the situation.

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