Odisha Landslide Leaves 12 Missing After Cyclone Arnab Rain

A landslide triggered by heavy rain from Cyclone Arnab struck a hilltop village on the border of Ganjam and Kandhamal districts, leaving 12 people missing. The Odisha government has mobilised 170 personnel from the National Disaster Response Force, Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force and Special Operation Group to locate the missing residents. The village, home to 26 people, saw 13 escape while 13 went missing; one missing person has been traced, the others remain untraceable. The landslide at Gidipabali village was one of ten such incidents during the heavy rainfall, with hundreds of villages in southern Odisha inundated. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced intensified rescue and relief operations, including shifting residents to safer locations and providing essential facilities at relief camps. Survivors reported houses buried by sludge and injuries from falling stones. Two injured women were transported to a health centre, and relief work has accelerated in districts such as Aska, with water tankers and bottled water distributed. Search teams continue to work on locating the missing individuals while the administration carries out broader rescue and relief efforts across the affected districts.