A Bridge to Survival: Kerala’s Township Model After the Mundakkai Tragedy

Kalpetta: Punnappuzha still flows, mingled with the sobs of soil torn apart by the great disaster. In the land drenched in death, grief hangs as thick as the rain-soaked wood. And yet, above it all, in the cool breeze that rises from Vellarimala, the smiles of survival flutter with new wings. The Bailey bridge stands tall with firm resolve, a witness to a people's reclaiming of life.

Tomorrow marks one year since the Mundakkai–Chooralmala disaster, which devastated Kerala. It was just past midnight on July 29, 2024, when death rained down on Wayanad’s villages. A landslide from the Smiling Slopes thundered down upon Mundakkai and Chooralmala. Punnappuzha, once a life-giving river, turned into a river of death. Many, jolted awake in their sleep, didn’t have time to rise before slipping into eternal rest.

The deluge claimed 298 lives. Massive boulders came crashing down upon homes within seconds. Huge trees carried by the torrent crushed lives in their path. Infants were wrenched from their mothers' arms. When morning broke, the villages that had lain down to sleep the night before were unrecognizable. All around was the wail of the living and the cries for lost loved ones. Schools, places of worship, and institutions were buried in the mud. Within mud-covered houses, the pulse of life still struggled.

Kerala faced a landslide disaster of a scale the country had never seen before. Through an unparalleled rescue effort, the state fought back. Fire and police departments, the army, disaster response forces, and hundreds of volunteers came together to save thousands. Those who had lost everything were immediately shifted to relief camps. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan led the rescue operation directly. Four ministers stayed in the area for a month to coordinate efforts. After months of searching, 32 missing persons were declared dead, and financial aid was provided to their families. Even as the central government didn’t provide a single rupee, the state advanced on its own with a global model that included building a new township.

The wind now blowing over Vellarimala carries the clear mist of hope blooming in the smile of rebirth. The memory of that night, marked only by the stench of death, now lies somewhere beyond the mountains. Come see the faces of people who have learned to smile again from a land that lost everything. Their extraordinary courage on the path of survival is not just their story, it is also the success story of a governance system that held their hand and walked with them.