The death toll in the massive landslide that wrecked havoc in Wayanad district of Indian tropical state Keral has crossed 250.
The Health Minister of Kerala Veena George confirmed the matter.
Veena was telling an interview with India Today, as seen in YouTube: "Health department has done 256 post-mortems that includes body parts also."
"Regarding these body parts we have taken the genetic samples and we are doing the DNA sampling. So that, that will be helpful in future to find who that person is," she told.
In landslide-hit Mundakkai villages with full of scenic beauty, the army-led search and rescue mission saved over 1,000 people till Wednesday
Mundakkai is in an area highly prone to disasters. However, the gushing soil, gravel and rock reached the town of Chooralmala, 6km (3.7 miles) away.
Extremely heavy rain triggered the landslides in the hilly areas early on Tuesday, leaving at lease 240 people are still missing and many injured.
The search and rescue operations resumed again on Thursday morning following a brief respite at night. Adverse weather conditions due to incessant rain pose challenges in the area.
At least 572mm (22.5 inches) of rain fell in the two days leading up to the landslide, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in a statement.
Nearly 350 of the 400 registered houses in the affected region have been damaged, Kerala’s Asianet TV channel reported, citing district officials.
In a post on social media platform X on Tuesday night, Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who until recently represented Wayanad in Parliament, said he had been unable to visit the disaster area. However, he and his sister Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi left for the affected area, as per latest media reports.
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has provided 4G services at landslide-hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai areas as only 3G services were available in the areas.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said he was “distressed by the landslides” and announced a compensation of 200,000 rupees ($2,388) to the victims’ families.
Nearly 500 people were killed around Kerala in 2018 during the worst flooding to hit the state in almost a century.
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