PETTIMUDI: Pettimudi is witnessing a spirited rescue operation where the NDRF, Fire and Rescue Services, police, volunteers and tribals of Edamalakudy are working as a single unit digging deep into the heaps of slush to find the missing people.
But a controversy is raging outside about the compensation announced by the government. While the state government announced a solatium of Rs 10 lakh for the relatives of the deceased in the plane crash at Kozhikode airport, only Rs 5 lakh was announced for the Pettimudi landslide victims’ relatives who belong to marginalised sections of society.
The fact that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who visited Karipur on Saturday, stayed away from Pettimudi also triggered a row. Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala and Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, who visited Pettimudi on Sunday, criticised the chief minister for not visiting Pettimudi and the double standards in fixing the solatium. “I don’t want to create a controversy at a time when we have to stand united. But my opinion is that the chief minister should visit Pettimudi. This is the common feeling shared by people here. The relatives of the landslide victims deserve a solatium equal to the amount announced for the relatives of plane crash victims,” said Chennithala.
“The chief minister should not show double standards in the face of a disaster. The value of life is the same whether it is in Pettimudi or Karipur. The need of the hour is to bring solace to the families of the victims. It is not right to have double standards. I visited Karipur and Pettimudi on the instruction from the prime minister. The chief minister should also visit Pettimudi and console the relatives of the landslide victims,” said Muraleedharan.
CPI also not happy with different yardsticks
The CPI is also not happy with the different yardsticks for fixing the compensation for victims. Local CPI leaders conveyed their displeasure to Revenue Minister E Chandrasekharan and Forest Minister K Raju. But locals say it was not the government or politicians but Kanan Devan Hills Plantation company that responded fast and came to the support of the workers.