Kerala High Court Takes Action on Wayanad Landslides
The Kerala High Court has taken suo moto cognizance of the Wayanad landslides that occurred on July 30, claiming 225 lives and displacing thousands of people. The division bench of justices Jayasankaran Nambiar and VM Shyamkumar directed the registry to take a suo moto case. The court also said that they should think about what can be done legally to control things like illegal mining and floods.
Based on media reports and a letter received by the High Court, the Wayanad landslide case was taken up on suo moto. The case will be heard tomorrow morning. After the Wayanad disaster, the High Court inquired about the situation. The court directed the government to examine what can be done to prevent natural calamities including landslides. The court summoned the Advocate General and instructed him to consider matters including legislation.
Some areas of Kerala are ecologically sensitive. This is a necessary step to reconsider whether sustainable development is possible here. Existing rules and regulations in these matters should be repealed if necessary. The division bench reminded the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary to deliberate and make a decision to prevent further natural calamities.
Prime Minister Modi to Visit Affected Areas
Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Thursday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit landslide-affected sites in Wayanad on August 10. In a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday, the Chief Minister said that the state has requested the central government to declare this as a national disaster and a severe calamity.
“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 said that the post-mortem procedures of 420 bodies have been conducted so far in Wayanad and added that the search operations will continue. “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.
Doubts Revealed
Kerala High Court -: The Kerala High Court is a big court in the state of Kerala, India. It makes important decisions about laws and justice in the state.
Wayanad -: Wayanad is a district in the state of Kerala, India. It is known for its beautiful hills and forests.
Landslides -: Landslides happen when a lot of rocks and soil slide down a hill or mountain. They can be very dangerous and cause a lot of damage.
Suo moto cognizance -: Suo moto cognizance means that the court decided to take action on its own, without anyone asking it to. It saw the problem and decided to help.
Displacing -: Displacing means that people had to leave their homes because it was not safe to stay there anymore.
Natural calamities -: Natural calamities are big, bad events caused by nature, like earthquakes, floods, or landslides. They can hurt people and damage buildings.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan -: Pinarayi Vijayan is the Chief Minister of Kerala. He is like the head of the state government and makes important decisions for the state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi -: Narendra Modi is the Prime Minister of India. He is the head of the central government and makes important decisions for the whole country.
National disaster -: A national disaster is a very big problem that affects a lot of people in a country. When something is called a national disaster, the central government helps more to fix the problem.
Committee -: A committee is a group of people chosen to do a special job. In this case, the committee will look at the damage from the landslides and decide what to do next.