Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 6 (IANS): Kerala Congress on Tuesday said that the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) must be utilised in the most transparent manner.

“The necessity to maintain transparency is of utmost importance. Like in the past when the worst floods hit in 2018, contributions came thick and fast. However, the utilisation of it turned into a legal issue due to the lack of transparency. This time there should be no such trouble,” Congress MLA Ramesh Chennithala told media person.

He said that it is the responsibility of the Vijayan government to ensure that there is proper accountability and also the utilisation of the funds should be transparent.

“We have also demanded that all should come forward and contribute to the CMDRF. All the opposition MLAs have decided to contribute one month’s salary to the CMDRF,” he said.

Earlier, State Congress Chief and Kannur Lok Sabha MP K. Sudhakaran also asked the Chief Minister to guarantee that the government will not divert the funds for any other project received for the rehabilitation of the disaster-hit people.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Sudhakaran hail from Kannur and have been having a five-decade-old feud, with one taking on the other at frequent intervals.

Tuesday marks the eighth day of Kerala’s worst-ever natural disaster which hit Wayanad leaving over 402 people dead and 180 people still missing.

Four villages of Wayanad have been washed away when a landslide occurred on July 30th.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has asked all the stakeholders to come forward and contribute to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) so that the state government can rehabilitate the landslide victims.