Wayanad, February 26 – In a significant outreach to landslide-affected families in Wayanad, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, and Wayanad MP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, laid the foundation stone for 100 houses being constructed by the Congress for survivors of the Chooralmala-Mundakkai disaster on Thursday.
Addressing the beneficiaries, Priyanka recalled her first visit to the region shortly after the tragedy struck on July 30, 2024.
"What I saw that day will never leave me," she said, recounting how families had lost their homes, livelihoods, schools, and businesses overnight.
What struck her most, she added, was the unity and courage displayed by people across religious lines.
Though she was not the MP at the time, Priyanka said she now feels like a member of the community.
"Between then and now, I have become a part of your family," she said, describing how she had met proud farmers forced to take up daily wage work and small traders struggling after their shops were washed away.
She said the party had raised the issue at multiple forums, including Parliament, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking a national disaster declaration, and written to the Prime Minister.
"Regardless of politics, everyone stood together," she noted.
The housing project will provide 1,100 sq ft homes on eight cents of land each.
While 3.25 acres have been acquired and sale deeds executed, another 2.18 acres will be purchased soon, with negotiations completed for five acres.
She also announced financial assistance of Rs five lakh for 40 affected shopkeepers to restart their businesses.
Rahul Gandhi said the tragedy had revealed the resilience and compassion of Wayanad's people.
"You lost a lot, but not your courage or your humanity," he said, calling the ceremony an act of remembrance for those who died.
In a lighter moment, he narrated a sibling disagreement during their journey, drawing laughter from the gathering.
"The other day I said something silly to my sister, and since then she hasn't spoken to me. I told my mother that my sister wasn't speaking to me, and until the flight landed here, she had a long face. The moment we landed here, she changed. That's what Wayanad means to us," he said, reaffirming that their association with the district goes beyond politics.