Meet Major General VT Mathew, the Malayali Army officer who led rescue operations in landslide-hit Wayanad
By Aishwarya Nair | First Published Aug 5, 2024, 2:33 PM ISTMajor General VT Mathew, a Malayali officer from the Army led a successful rescue operation in Wayanad, Kerala, after a landslide. He expressed satisfaction with the operation, despite challenging weather conditions and unfamiliar terrain.
Wayanad: Major General VT Mathew, who led the rescue operations in the Wayanad landslide disaster, returned after paving the way for hundreds of people to escape. District Collector DR Meghashree bid farewell to the Malayali Major General, expressing the state's gratitude and respect. Although he left Wayanad, he will continue to monitor the rescue operations and relief efforts in the district from the Kerala-Karnataka headquarters in Bengaluru. If needed, he will return to the district again, said Major General VT Mathew.
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Immediately after the landslide, various military units, including the police, fire department, and NDRF, began rescue operations. On July 30 at 12:30 pm, various military units arrived. The army rescued many people in the initial stages. On July 31, Major General VT Mathew, GOC (General Officer Commanding) of Kerala-Karnataka, took charge of the rescue mission. The team of around 500 soldiers included experts from the Madras Engineering Group who built a Bailey bridge.
On the first day, the army rescued around 300 people. They immediately started building a Bailey bridge and also constructed a temporary footbridge for emergency rescue operations. Since then, Major General Mathew led the rescue efforts. He worked tirelessly day and night with his team. The army rescued around 500 people in two days. Currently, 500 soldiers are still engaged in rescue operations.
"Despite the challenging weather conditions and unfamiliar terrain, I am extremely satisfied that we were able to successfully rescue many people," said Major General VT Mathew.
The rescue mission was aided by various teams, including the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Fire Force, Police Special Operations Group, Indian Army's Military Engineering Group, Electronics and Mechanical Engineers Branch, Territorial Army, Defense Security Corps, Navy, Coast Guard, Tamil Nadu Fire Force, National Disaster Response Authority's Delta Squad, Kerala Police's Indian Reserve Battalion, Forest Department, locals, and volunteers. Initially, the rescue operations were carried out risking lives.
After the 1999 Odisha supercyclone disaster, I have not been part of such a massive rescue operation," Major General VT Mathew said, highlighting the scale of the Wayanad disaster. He expressed deep sorrow over the loss of hundreds of lives, including children, the elderly, women, and youth.
"All the soldiers share the grief of the families of the deceased," he added.
Major General VT Mathew was born to Mathew Malyekkal and Rosakutty Mathew Malyekkal in Ezhamuttam, Thodupuzha, Idukki district. He is married to Mini and has two children, a daughter Pifani, a software engineer, and a son Mervin, a B.Tech student in Delhi. He studied at the Sainik School in Thiruvananthapuram until 11th standard and later at the National Defense Academy in Pune and the Indian Military Academy. He first joined the Madras Regiment and later served as Commanding Officer at the Pakistan and China borders. He has received the President's War Service Medal in 2021 and the President's Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023. He has also served as part of the UN peacekeeping force in Sudan and Congo for two years
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