Uttarakhand still finding its feet
Sixty- three- year old Awadh Singh Bhandari of Pandukeshwar village ( Chamoli district) still gets goosebumps remembering that devastating night when a deluge washed away thousands of lives and rendered hundreds homeless in Uttarakhand two years ago.
Like many others, Mr Bhandari lost his home — a two- storey building — a part of which was the family’s source of income. Mr Bhandari used to rent out a part of the building to Badrinath pilgrims.
“It was a night of terror and fear. It took away everything from us. There was heavy rainfall and no electricity. We picked up whatever we could from our house and took shelter in a cow- shed, which was our home for more than five months thereafter,” Mr Bhandari told this newspaper, remembering the disaster, a flash flood which hit Uttarakhand on June 16 and 17, 2013.
Despite the state’s effort to provide shelter to the affected — more than one lakh people in 4,200 villages — only a handful of them could benefit. Others are forced to live in ramshackle or makeshift houses.
Several agencies are also working to fill the gap and contribute towards the cause. One of them is Charities Aid Foundation ( CAF) India, which, along with its validated NGO partner, Uttaranchal Youth and Rural Development Centre ( UYRDC), is helping in revival of livelihood in the flood- affected areas.
With support from individual donors and corporate partners, CAF India has so far provided transitional shelters ( 200 sq ft) to at least 12 families in Pandukeshwar valley and Mr Bhandari was one of the beneficiaries.
“We are very thankful to them. They are putting a lot of effort in our rehabilitation. Otherwise, how long we could have lived in cow- shed. Now, my family can at least get a sound sleep,” he said.
Besides the project has provided skill training to more than 300 beneficiaries in tailoring and cutting, poultry, preparing artefacts and bamboo handicrafts, agriculture, animal husbandry, etc. The programme has also led to construction of a protection wall/ dam as a safeguard for 2,500 people, including villagers and tourists.
Among the beneficiaries enrolled for cutting and tailoring were teenagers from Pandukeshwar valley — Arpita, Laxmi and Pranjal — who were given skill training in wall hanging artefact- making to support their families.
“We are thankful to Shaksham project for bringing out the creativity in us and making our life more meaningful,” they said.
CAF India director Avijeet Kumar said: “CAF India and UYRDC designed programme strategies to undertake relief and rehabilitation projects, including livelihood and disaster management education, to improve resilience of communities. A huge credit for this goes to all our donors, both corporate and individual, that have played a major role in rebuilding the state. The CAF India would like to thank Pearson, D. E. Shaw, ING Vysya Foundation and AMEX for their support.”