The Karnataka government has constituted a 'forests and western ghats encroachment clearance task force' to clear illegal resorts, home stays and all forest encroachments in the entire ghat regions of the state, including the western ghats, which covers 10 districts.

This is not the first disaster to strike the region. In 2019, a major landslide in Puthumala, just a few kilometres away, claimed 17 lives, damaged property, and rendered the land largely uncultivable.

The move comes on the heels of a devastating series of landslides that claimed over 300 lives in Wayanad.

The Western Ghats are bracing for heavy rains as the southwest monsoon intensifies, prompting the Tamil Nadu forest department to issue a tourist advisory for the Mancholai area until further notice. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted prolonged heavy rainfall across the Western Ghats in the coming days.