The CM added that Kerala submitted its first memorandum soon after the disaster, on August 17, 2024, and a detailed Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) report was submitted on November 13, 2024.

He stated that though both submissions were made while Section 13 was still in effect, it was only on March 29 this year that the centre notified its removal. He called the move inhumane and unjust.

He also pointed out that it took the centre five months to officially declare it as a disaster of ‘severe nature’. This delay blocked international aid possibilities, added the CM.

Pinarayi Vijayan said there is rising public anger over the centre’s neglect of Kerala. Claiming that, though the people of Wayanad looked up to the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the disaster with hope, it turned out to be “a photoshoot managed by PR agencies. He urged the government to respect the rights of the state and its people and to provide the support they are entitled to without further delay.