Kerala landslides: Drones ferry food to relief workers
Wayanad (Kerala) (PTI): As the challenging search for survivors and victims continues in the devastated landscape of landslide-ravaged Wayanad villages, authorities have turned to unmanned aerial vehicles to transport food packets to regions that still remain out of reach by traditional means.
In a bid to sustain the hundreds of personnel searching the treacherous terrain for signs of life, authorities employed modern drones capable of carrying food packets for up to 10 people at a time.
"A rapid food and water delivery system has been established to support rescue workers. Drone operations enabled the direct delivery of food to personnel operating heavy machinery, such as Hitachi and JCB equipment," according to an official release here on Monday.
The food for the rescue workers is being prepared at the Community Kitchen functioning at Meppadi Polytechnic, it said.
Under the supervision of the Food Safety Department, the Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association is preparing around 7,000 food packets daily, which are then distributed to those in need, the release added.
As per the government figures till Sunday evening, a total of 221 bodies and 166 body parts of the July 30 landslide victims had been recovered so far.
The number of missing people had gone down to 180 from the earlier 206 after the authorities were able to get in touch with some of them over the phone, they said on Sunday.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
UP Cong chief Ajay Rai hospitalised after fainting, stable
Lucknow (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai was hospitalised here after he fell unconscious due to low sodium levels, party leaders said on Saturday.
They said he was admitted to Medanta Hospital on Friday evening and is stable.
"Ajay Rai was admitted to Medanta Hospital in Lucknow at around 6 pm on Friday after he fell unconscious as his sodium levels had dropped. He fell unconscious at his residence in Lucknow. For the entire day, he was engaged in party programmes and had also gone to the airport," Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Anshu Awasthi told PTI.
Congress in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Avinash Pande told PTI, "Now, he (Ajay Rai) is stable and I am also reaching Lucknow."
Medanta Hospital Director Dr Rakesh Kapoor told PTI that Rai collapsed at his home on Friday evening and was subsequently admitted to the hospital's emergency ward.
Medical examinations revealed that Rai was suffering from a sodium deficiency and elevated blood pressure. Doctors administered immediate treatment and he is doing significantly better now, Kapoor said.
A team of doctors is monitoring his health. Rai is conversing with others and his condition is stable, he added.
In a post on X late Friday night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished Rai a speedy recovery.
Rai hails from Varanasi and had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections against Modi from the parliamentary constituency. The Congress appointed him as the Uttar Pradesh unit chief in 2023.
