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Pampa: A Raging River & Painful Reflections! (George Abraham)

Published on 18 August, 2018
Pampa: A Raging River & Painful Reflections! (George Abraham)
It has been challenging to sit down and watch the devastation that is taking place in my hometown Kallissery & Changannur and its surroundings with dried eyes. People who have built their lives during a course of a lifetime, many with their sweat and blood in foreign lands, could only stand helplessly and witness this disaster of biblical proportions or flee from their habitat for their dear lives.

Kallissery and surrounding areas on the Pampa River banks have been known for its pristine landscape, fertile soil, and inexhaustible water supply. My own family, Thekkattil, is one of the early settlers on the river bank. In those days, most of the travel and commerce was conducted via the river and it was privileged who lived near water.

I have heard of the flood of the year 99 (1924) from my grandfather who has described to me in detail the devastation that took place, and they all had to run to the higher ground to save themselves. However, growing up there, I have experienced only occasional flooding that would bring knee-deep water on the ground at times, but would crest and recede very quickly.

In those days, the people who were vulnerable to the floods in our area were few in numbers who lived in the outlying areas such as in small islands (Thuruthu) in the middle of the paddy fields. They would quickly figure out the potential of a flood and move to the higher ground.  If the flood happens at a harvesting time, the whole area will face hard times economically for a foreseeable future.

However, things have substantially changed over the last 25 years. Central Travancore is run on a money-order economy. Foreign remittances have created a boom in real estate business and home building. Most of the canals from the river to these paddy fields were blocked and many parts of the wetlands were filled up and beautiful houses with modern amenities were constructed. Nevertheless, the inordinate mining of the sand from the river bed not only deepened the river but may have affected the water table in a place that rarely experienced drinking water shortage.

Since most of the children are away earning money, some of these houses are occupied by their aging parents and others just remained empty until their occasional visits to the hometown. Economically the area has become prosperous as people went about their ways of being independent, self-confident and resourceful.

It is that world of theirs that is being shattered right before our eyes. People are shocked to see that their carefully planned lives and peaceful surroundings can be upended that quickly and violently. They are still trying to grapple with the reality of this immense disaster and trying to make sense out of it.

I honestly wonder why there were no proper warnings to the people of this impending disaster! Why were people not advised to collect water and essential food items and move to a higher ground? Although the officials knew about the potential ramifications of the weather conditions early in advance, why the dam authorities have waited until the last minute to release all the water at one time? Is there no scientific way to figure out a controlled release of water ahead of rains that could cause only minimal damage? 

There is no doubt that more effective governance could have better served the people of Kerala. Many would argue that this is not the time to deal with those questions and I would sincerely agree. However, we do not seem to be learning from past mistakes at all. We discussed  and debated in detail about the failures of the Okhi cyclone but seem to have learned nothing from that horrible experience. The old wisdom states that 'if we fail to learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it!

It is pitiful to see that a Member of Legislative Assembly wailing in front of the news cameras seeking help. His party is in power, and he should have been knocking that door and convincing an obstinate Chief Minister to transfer control of the relief works to the Army and Navy that has the capabilities to intervene in a disaster of this magnitude. The false pride and the question of federalism should have been set aside, and the lives and property of his citizens should have been of paramount importance to this ministry at this point.

There is very little surprise as regards to how the Modi-led BJP government has reacted to the horrible situation in Kerala. If those leaders truly wanted to help, they do not need to make a flyover by helicopter to assess the real damage. They already have sufficient data at their fingertips to make prudent decisions. Their pitiful and sardonic offer of 100 Crores first and then raising it to 500 crores reveal their sectarian mindsets and convoluted thinking that fail to treat all Indians as equal citizens. In contrast, the Central government has allocated 4000 Crores for Kumba Mela and 3000 Crores for a Sardar Patel Statue. The unmatched misery, suffering, and death of the people in Kerala appear not very high on their priority list.

Right in the middle of this disaster of epic proportions, Tamil Nadu government dares to fiddle and play politics with the lives of the people in Kerala on whom they depend on water. The safety of the Mullaperiyar dam may be debatable, yet they have used this as an opportunity to prove their point of view. To an extent, we should blame our politicians in Kerala for renewing that century-old agreement instead of scrapping it and taking full control of the management of the dam.

Amidst all this turmoil and confusion, Keralites remain resilient. They are working day and night to help each other while saving many lives. In Kallissery, a Pentecostal Church is hosting Christians and Hindus by providing shelter while Muslims from Erattupetta is bringing in a truckload of food to alleviate the hunger and warm up the hearts and minds of those under siege. At the end of the day, our shared humanity is our greatest strength.  The brightest spot in all of this confusion and calamity is, hopefully, this message gets resonated!

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texan2 2018-08-18 23:00:54
You are right. Keralathile ettavum valiya durantham - here even a 4th class passout can become the leader (minister ) for such a complex and challenging technological subject called Electrical Engineering. Do you think any sensible knowledgeable engineers and officers working under such minister would even dare to speak about their ANTICIPATED FEARS ? meaning trying to make the boss understand the need of early and controlled opening of the dams - as you mentioned - knowing very well that the techncal reasoning will not go in to the head of the minister? Minister would have visited the dam and said based on pure visual image - vellam veruthe kalayanda, dam onnum ippo thurakkenda - ithanu nammude keralathinte sariyaya durantham. People like you should stay away from partisan and religion based politics and raise voice for what is right based on science and technology and support knowledgable people in kerala politics. You want to form an independent organisation in USA, forgetting all your past affiliations? people will pour in.
മലയാളത്തില്‍ ടൈപ്പ് ചെയ്യാന്‍ ഇവിടെ ക്ലിക്ക് ചെയ്യുക