Search operations continued with increased force and equipment in the landslide-hit areas of Wayanad for the sixth consecutive day on Sunday.

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Search operations on Sunday focused on the areas of Mundakkai and Panchirimattam. Rescue teams are using advanced radars, drones, and heavy machinery in their endeavour.

Search teams also continued operations on Sunday along the 40-kilometre stretch of the Chaliyar River, which flows through Wayanad, Malappuram, and Kozhikode districts. Many bodies and remains were recovered from the river near Nilambur in Malappuram.

The latest efforts by various agencies, including the Army, the Navy, police, Fire and Rescue teams, and the NDRF, along with local residents, led to the recovery of three more bodies and 13 body parts from the river on Saturday.

These recoveries bring the total number of bodies found in the Chaliyar River to 73 and body parts to 132, making a grim total of 205. The river carried these bodies, or rather parts of human bodies mutilated by the devastating landslide, for around 25 km to Pothukallu near Nilambur in Malappuram district.

Meanwhile, the death toll from the massive landslides in Wayanad has risen to 369 with the recovery of four more bodies on Sunday. However, the official count stands at around 240. Of the deceased, 148 bodies have been identified and handed over to their relatives. A total of 206 people are still missing. Among the deceased, 30 are children. Reports indicate that 49 children from the affected region remain unaccounted for, some of whom are students of Vellarimala GVHSS. The exact number of missing students is still unknown as authorities continue their efforts to ascertain the details.

The bodies of unidentified victims who died in the landslide in Wayanad will be laid to rest on Sunday at a site in Puthumala provided free of charge by Harrison Malayalam Plantation Limited. Out of the 67 unidentified bodies, 8 will be cremated on Sunday.

Initially, it was announced that all 67 bodies would be cremated together. However, in the evening, Revenue Minister Rajan announced that only 8 bodies would be cremated. Funeral services will be held after interfaith prayers.

Out of the 67 unidentified bodies, 27 are complete bodies, while the rest are body parts. Each body part will be treated as an individual corpse and cremated, officials said.

The devastating landslide has destroyed approximately 3,700 acres of agricultural land, leading to a staggering crop loss of Rs 21.111 crore.

Meanwhile, the Health Department is operating 24-hour counselling sessions in the 17 relief camps in the Meppadi panchayat in Wayanad to address the emotional issues faced by the survivors of the deadly landslides. Around 2,000 psychological counselling sessions and 400 group counselling sessions have been conducted for the survivors from the disaster-struck zones of Mundakkai and Chooralmala area.

The opposition Congress-led UDF on Sunday announced that all its MLAs will contribute one month’s salary to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF). Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan on Sunday said that the UDF will take part in all the rehabilitation efforts and work towards restoring normalcy in the lives of the survivors.

Earlier, the ruling CPI-M-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) had announced that its members in the assembly and Parliament will contribute their one month’s salary to the CMDRF.

The decision of the Opposition UDF in this regard assumes significance as the issue of making donations to the CMDRF had created differences within the Congress. Congress Working Committee member Ramesh Chennithala’s decision to donate his one-month MLA salary to Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) invited criticism from KPCC president K Sudhakaran on Saturday. The issue has opened a fresh battleground between KPCC chief K Sudhakaran and Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan.

Responding to Chennithala’s decision, KPCC chief K Sudhakaran said that Chennithala should not have contributed his salary to the Left government’s relief fund. Chennithala should have donated the amount to the party’s own relief mechanism, K Sudhakaran said on Saturday.

“The Congress party has its own forum to procure funds. All the allied organisations of the party have kicked off fundraising. Chennithala should have donated his salary to that option. It was not right on his part to donate to the CMDRF,” said Sudhakaran.

Rejecting the KPCC president K Sudhakaran’s statement against donating to CMDRF, Satheesan asked everyone to contribute to the CMDRF, stating that this is not the time to play politics.

“There is nothing wrong in paying money to the CMDRF. Sudhakaran should not have blamed Chennithala for his decision to contribute his MLA salary to the CMDRF. It’s not the time to play politics,” Satheesan told media persons in Kozhikode on Saturday.