KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Thursday directed the registrar general to register a suo moto case over the catastrophic landslides in Mundakkai and Chooralmala areas of Wayanad on July 30, which has claimed the lives of at least 226 persons and displaced thousands of people.
A division bench of justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and V M Syam Kumar registered the case based on media reports of the incident. The bench will consider the matter on Friday morning.
According to media reports, the court will take cognizance of Gadgil and Kasturirangan committee reports while hearing the matter. The High Court had earlier inquired about the factors that triggered the landslide. The court also held a Full Court reference on August 2nd to express condolences for the loss of lives and to show support to the survivors of the landslide.
Search operations to find those gone missing in the disaster have entered the tenth day as the official death toll stands at 226. However, as per unofficial reports, the death toll has likely crossed 400 with many still under the debris.
According to figures released by the local administration on Wednesday, as many as 138 people are still missing.