Kerala: Rahul Gandhi appeals to people to donate relief material

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday appealed to the people to provide relief materials to those hit by the devastating floods in his Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency.

Gandhi, currently visiting areas ravaged by floods and landslides in his constituency, posted the appeal on his Facebook page.

"My Parliamentary constituency Wayanad has been devastated by floods with thousands left homeless and shifted to relief camps", Gandhi said.

"We are in urgent need of materials, including water bottles, sleeping mats, blankets, undergarments, dhothis, nightgowns, children's apparel, slippers, sanitary napkins, soaps, toothbrushes, toothpaste, Dettol, soap powder, bleaching powder and chlroine," he said.

He also urged people to give biscuits, sugar, green gram, dal, black gram, coconut oil, coconuts, vegetables, curry powders, bread and baby food to the affected people.

Gandhi appealed to donors to send the material to collection centres in Malappuram district, which he listed.

He had on Sunday termed as 'heart breaking",the suffering of people due to floods and landslides in his constituency Wayanad and urged the state and Central governments to provide immediate aid to those hit by the natural calamity in Kerala.

After visiting people affected by floods and landslides in some relief centres, Gandhi had promised to do everything possible to get them back on their feet. Three assembly segments in Malappuram district form part of Gandhi's Wayanad constituency.

Gandhi, who won with a record margin from the hill constituency in the April Lok Sabha elections, said during his stay he would visit relief camps across Wayanad and review relief measures with state government officials.

The Congress leader had said he had spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Wayanad District Collector and Congress workers in the state on the flood situation in his constituency.

This is his second visit to Wayanad after the election. Earlier, he had come on a three-day thanksgiving visit when he addressed road shows and public meetings in the constituency.

Gandhi chose Wayanad as his second seat in addition to the party stronghold of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, which he, however, lost in the 2019 polls.