Betrayal: Priyanka slams Centre on no loan waiver for Wayanad landslides
New Delhi (PTI): With the Centre telling the Kerala High Court that the loans of people affected by the landslides in Wayanad last year would not be waived, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday said this is a "betrayal" and her party strongly condemns this "apathy".
The Union government has told the Kerala High Court that the loans of people affected by the landslides in Wayanad in July last year would not be waived. Instead, they will be rescheduled or restructured in accordance with the RBI's Master Directions on Natural Calamities.
The Centre made this submission in an affidavit filed in response to the high court's query on whether the loans availed by the affected individuals could be waived.
Congress general secretary and Wayanad MP Vadra said, "We strongly condemn this apathy and stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in Wayanad."
"Wayanad landslide victims have lost everything - homes, land, livelihoods. Yet, the government refuses to offer even a loan waiver. Instead, they get mere loan rescheduling and restructuring," she said.
"This is not relief. This is a betrayal. We strongly condemn this apathy and stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in Wayanad.Their pain will not be ignored - we will raise their voices at every platform until justice is served," Gandhi said in a post on X.
In the affidavit, the Union Finance Ministry stated that a special meeting of the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) Kerala was held on August 19 last year.
The meeting, which was also attended by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, decided to extend the applicable relief measures in line with the RBI's Master Directions on Natural Calamities.
According to the RBI's master directions, in the event of a natural calamity, the financial relief measures to be adopted include the restructuring or rescheduling of existing loans which would entail a one-year moratorium and the provision of fresh loans.
The Centre had earlier informed a bench of Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Easwaran S that the proposed measures were limited to a moratorium and restructuring of loans availed by the landslide victims.
This submission was made during the hearing of a PIL initiated by the court on its own in the wake of the Wayanad landslides, aimed at improving disaster prevention and management in Kerala.
A major landslide struck the Mundakkai and Chooralmala regions on July 30 last year, almost decimating both areas.
The disaster left hundreds injured, claimed over 200 lives, and 32 persons remain missing.
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Narine stars as KKR keep playoff hopes alive with 14-run win over DC
New Delhi, Apr 29 (PTI): Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Delhi Capitals by 14 runs to keep their IPL play-off hopes alive here on Tuesday.
Invited to bat, a collective batting effort helped Kolkata Knight Riders post 204 for 9.
Their bowlers, led by Sunil Narine 3/29, then restricted the Capitals to 190/9 despite contributions by Faf du Plessis (62), Axar Patel (43) and Vipraj Nigam (38).
Earlier, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (44 off 32 balls) top-scored for KKR.
Mitchell Starc (3/43) picked up three wickets for the hosts, while spinners Axar 2/27 and Nigam (2/41) chipped in with two wickets apiece.
Brief Scores:
Kolkata Knight Riders: 204 for 9 in 20 overs (Angkrish Raghuvanshi 44, Rinku Singh 36; Mitchell Starc 3/43).
Delhi Capitals: 190 for 9 in 20 overs (Faf du Plessis 62, Axar Patel 43; Sunil Narine 3/29).
