Wayanad mudslide: CM Satheesan holds emergency session; The agriculture minister called it a man-made disaster

Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan met Agriculture Minister T. Siddique among others. File photo: Special arrangements

Following the mudslide on Tuesday (July 7, 2026), Chief Minister VD Satheesan held an emergency meeting with Agriculture Minister T. Siddique, who hails from the district. He directed Revenue Minister AP Anilkumar and Mr. Siddique to rush to Wayanad and coordinate rescue operations.

As part of the rescue efforts, a unit of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) from Meenangadi will soon reach the spot. The Chief Minister also directed the NDRF team stationed at Kozhikode to proceed to Wayanad. He further spoke to the Wayanad District Collector on phone to assess the situation. He will soon visit the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) to coordinate the relief work.

Also Read: Wayanad mudslide LIVE updates

According to KSDMA, the incident took place at the construction site of the Wayanad-Kalladi tunnel, where debris accumulated during excavation for the tunnel road project slid down amid heavy rains, blocking the roads. According to preliminary reports, five people were injured and taken to hospital after being hit by debris. No casualties have been reported yet. The KSDMA said the region received extremely heavy 265 mm rainfall in the last 24 hours.

Work at the site has been suspended since Monday (July 6, 2026) due to heavy rain. However, people moving around the place were caught in a mudslide. According to Mr. Siddique, unscientifically stacked excavated earth caused the accident. He claimed that the incident was caused by the fact that the contractor did not remove the accumulated soil in time. This can only be described as a man-made disaster, he told the media on Tuesday (July 7, 2026).

Published – July 7, 2026 1:40 PM IST