Massive landslide near key Wayanad tunnel project; 5 killed
What's the story
A massive landslide struck Kerala's Wayanad district on Tuesday after the region witnessed heavy rainfall since Monday night, claiming the lives of five people. According to PTI, the landslide occurred near the Meenakshi Bridge in Kalladi, where construction on a tunnel route was underway. Meenakshi is about four kilometers from Chooralmala, one of the worst-hit villages during the 2024 landslides that killed around 300 people. Seven workers involved in the Anakkampoyil-Kalladi-Meppadi twin tunnel project are feared to be trapped.
Rescue efforts
NDRF teams on way for rescue operations
A government official said those feared trapped are engineers and security staff.
"If work was going on there, it would have been a bigger tragedy," she said.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams from Kozhikode and Wayanad are on their way to the site for rescue operations.
Chief Minister VD Satheeshan has called an emergency meeting with Wayanad Minister T Siddique to coordinate these efforts.
Twitter Post
Videos show landslide aftermath
A landslide at the Kalladi tunnel work site in #Wayanad blocked the road and injured 5 people. They have been taken to the hospital. No deaths have been reported. Work at the site had already been stopped because of heavy rain. The area received 265 mm of rain in the last 24… pic.twitter.com/3LrpPhR0gM
— Ashish (@KP_Aashish) July 7, 2026
Project overview
About Kozhikode-Wayanad twin tunnel project
The Kozhikode-Wayanad twin tunnel project is a ₹2,134 crore infrastructure initiative aimed at improving connectivity in north Kerala. It involves constructing a four-lane tunnel road, with twin tunnels cutting through the Western Ghats.
The project has been awarded to Dilip Buildcon for construction and is expected to be completed in four years.
However, environmental concerns have been raised due to blasting requirements for construction in fragile areas of the Western Ghats.
Minister's statement
Unscientific dumping of soil, mud led to disaster: Minister
Agriculture Minister T Siddique blamed "unscientific dumping" of soil and mud as part of the tunnel project for the disaster.
"It's a disaster perpetuated by unscientific dumping of soil and mud as part of the tunnel project. There were indications of such actions and they were raised at meetings of the Konkan officials. But it seems no corrective steps were taken. Six people have been hospitalized so far," Siddique said, calling the landslide a "man-made" disaster.