India rises as one to rescue, help flood victims of devastating Kerala disaster
THE last week was a tough one for India.
Unpredictable weather patterns triggered by climate change wreaked havoc in many parts of India.
Kerala, the tropical paradise with a long shoreline, tranquil stretches of emerald backwaters, impressive art forms and exotic wildlife, in short “God’s own country”, saw nature’s fury unleashed through unprecedented rains during the south west monsoon, resulting in massive destruction in the ensuing landslides and floods.
The worst crisis since 1924 when the Periyar river, the longest in Kerala, burst its banks and devastated the countryside, the current Kerala floods left more than 373 people dead and scores missing in its wake. Loss to property and infrastructure is still being ascertained but expected to be several billion dollars, at the least.
Let’s look at some facts to have a sense of the enormity of the disaster. The federal specialised disaster response force – National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) – had deployed 57 teams involving 1 300 personnel and 435 boats for the rescue and relief operations in Kerala.
A disaster of this scale saw nationwide co-ordinated efforts at rescue and relief and deployments by other agencies – Army had 23 teams and 104 boats on the ground, Navy deployed 94 rescue teams, one medical team, nine helicopters, two fixed wing aircrafts, 94 boats and Air Force deployed 22 helicopters and 23 fixed wing aircrafts.
The Coast Guard deployed 42 teams, 49 boats, two helicopters, two fixed wing aircrafts and 27 boats. Paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force and Border Security Force ably supplemented the efforts with their deployments. This was in addition to the resources activated and deployed by the Kerala government.
Since August 9, the NDRF, Army and Navy have rescued and evacuated more than 6 700 persons and provided medical assistance to more than 890.
The floods uprooted all sinews of transportation and communication. Railway tracks were shaken asunder, airports had to shut down, roads were either submerged or devastated by strong currents.
The gargantuan challenge to rescue and relief operations was compounded by lack of connectivity.
Relief material from various parts of the country was delivered to Cochin port through coastal shipping.
Naval ship INS Deepak brought in about 800 tons of fresh water and 18 tons of provisions to Cochin. A coastal crude oil vessel Swarna Godavari from Mumbai brought in 50 000 MT Crude oil to meet the fuel requirement in the state.
Several transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force were pressed into action to navigate the challenging landing strips and deliver relief material.
The devastating Kerala floods saw the country rising to the occasion and responding in all possible manner to help the people in Kerala. Social media was effectively deployed to raise awareness and funds, and channel efforts of people, in India as well as abroad.
Communities acted voluntarily in all corners of India, started crowd sourcing of items – clothing, medicines, food, water, etc, required in Kerala and promptly dispatched them to Kerala.
The Indian diaspora abroad pooled their efforts in rescue and relief operations as well as mobilising resources for reconstructions of Kerala.
Corporates pitched in by sponsoring items they manufactured and services they offered, community kitchens and funding.
The National Service Scheme (NSS) volunteers in Kerala took up the relief and rescue operations on a war-footing basis. About 1 200 NSS units across the state were fully involved in the relief activities. The volunteers helped in sanitizing the affected area, preparing food packets for the flood victims, running common kitchen and distributing medicines.
They also collected items of daily uses like dry rations, clothes, soaps, sanitary napkins, medicines of regular use, milk powder, bleaching powders, hand wash, sanitizers, etc for prompt delivery to the last mile in flood ravaged Kerala.
The volunteers rescued and evacuated more than 38000 people from the flood-affected areas and provided medical aid to more than 23 000 people.
There were other powerful stories as well, that of the grit and sagacity, endurance and selflessness of common folks, that emerged out of the crisis.
Hanan Hamid, a 21-year old college student who sells fish to make ends meet and pay her college fees, donated INR 150 000 (R30 000) towards flood relief.
A pregnant woman with a leaking water bag, stranded in one of the worst flood-hit areas in Kerala, was airlifted by an Indian navy chopper. She delivered her baby 30 minutes later in a hospital.
A new phrase has been coined for the fishermen in Kerala – “Superheroes without capes”. They proved to be the heroes with oars and boats. While they were still reeling from the devastation caused to their homes and livelihood from Cyclone Ockhi – the powerful tropical storm that hit shores of southern India in December last year – undeterred, they gathered their collective wisdom and instincts, called out courage and determination and got into their boats to provide rescue services, where airlift was not possible and taking relief material to remote corners. Some got their boats damaged beyond repair, other lost their boats in the strong currents, but on they went and helped hundreds.
Their story takes an image through a popular social media video where a fisherman is showed kneeling, almost submerged in flood water and offering himself as a step for the elderly and children to climb into the boat.
A temple hall in Thrissur district in Kerala turned into a prayer hall for Eid on August 22 as the nearby mosque remained submerged in flood waters.
The temple hall was serving as a relief centre for the duration of the flood. Many mosques in Kerala sheltered families throughout the duration of the floods. A temple at Wayanad district and a shrine dedicated to Lord Ayyappa in Malappuram were inundated due to the floods. People from all faiths came together to clean the places of worship.
Forces of nature are powerful. So are such stories of purpose, perseverance and resolve.
Shukla is Consul-General of India in Cape Town.