BANGLADESH CYCLONE 1991 NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS

Item

Title
BANGLADESH CYCLONE 1991 NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS
extracted text
Vol 77. - i\f o / ~ £

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Ravi Narayan

A first hans" report on the
National Problem
A long winding canal and Barrackporc on the out­
with lazy fishing boats mo­ skirts of Neelganj village.
ored on its banks, long The journey from Bangalore
monotonous rows of that­ to this out of the way camp
ched bamboo huts covered in 24 Paraganas district had
with black foreign poly­ been a mixed fare. A short
thene, men, women and comfortable spell on the
children of all sizes and Brindavan, a long strenuous
descriptions with grim, des­ trip on the Howrah mail
pairing faces walking a- and an interesting but bum­
round, working or standing py ride on some of India's
in long, never-ending queues- worst roads and finally we
slush, dirt and disease every­ were there.
Ever since we entered
where—these were the first
impressions we got on Bengal by train, what struck
arrival at Neelganj camp for us most was the number of
Bangla Desh refugees. The people everywhere. People
camp was situated about 26 in the villages, at the level
miles out of Calcutta on the crossings, in the fields on
main road between Barasai the platforms. On reaching

Can their hearts be cured ?
Medical facilities have been
amply provided at the refugee camps to comfort the refugees
and counter the spread of epidemics.

Not wanted in their Country.
The inflow of Bangla Desh
refugees into India has been unprecedented.
Nearly two
million refugees have already sought shelter on Indian soil.

10

Calcutta this was even more
obvious. We saw the fam­
ous pavement dwellers of
Calcutta and people hanging
out of trams and buses, the
usual processions, trains
arriving and leaving How­
rah station packed to capa­
city. Everywhere people
and only people even as one
picked up the daily news­
paper and read of 7.5 million
more people having entered
into Eastein India. The
numbers were frightening.
It took us about a day to
survey the camp and judge
for ourselves what the pro­
blems of the people were
and decide what we could
do to solve them. The
camp commandant inform­
ed us that there were about
5-6,000 refugees (at a con­
servative estimate) with the
numbers increasing every
day. This was one of the
base camps and more and
more refugees hearing of the
better facilities available
were making their way to
Neelganj. The government
had provided all the families
with shelters in the form of
thatched bamboo huts cov­
ered with polythene-making
it as water proof as practi­
cally possible. The floors
were raised ledges of clay or
bricks. Many of the re­
fugees had a few cooking
pots while others had been
supplied some by the govern­
ment. Rations were being
supplied weekly, these con­
sisting of rice, pulses, vege­
tables, spices, oil and fire­
wood. CARITAS the or­
ganisation which had spon­
sored us had distributed
mats and clothes to most of
the families and started a
milk distribution program­
me. A government health
unit with provisions for ino­
culations and vaccinations
and medicines for head­
aches) had been functioning
here with poor results.
We started our dispensary
the next day—literally from
scratch. For all that we
had were a few boxes of
medicine and simple equip­

ment and four minds brim­
ming with ideas. We held
an out-patient clinic with
what facilities we had and
there were nearly 300 pati­
ents the first day. We saw
them all—diarrhoeas and
dysenteries of every kind,
pneumonias, tuberculosis,
malnutrition among the
children, measles and who­
oping cough, skin diseases
of all types, wounds and
ulcers and even a few bullet
wounds. It was an exciting
experience since at the end
of the first day we had got a
taste of what we were going
to expect for the next two
months.
Slowly and steadily we
improved our dispensary—
within a week we had an
out-patient section, a phar­
macy, a dressing section. In
another week’s time we
opened a small temporary
hospital with arrangements
for intravenous fluid admin­
istration. Meanwhile we
started an injection section.
A few days later we began
conducting deliveries and
within a fortnight we had
become a full-fledged pri­
mary health centre. The
queues were never-ending
and each evening we had to
close at 6 p.m. not because
the patients had decreased
but because we had no ar­
rangements to continue see­
ing them in the dusk. Al
first, we took the help of
some brothers from the
seminary where we had been
put up to converse with the
people—but within a fort­
night language was no bar­
rier. With broken Bengali
interspersed with a little
Hindi and a number of signs
we managed to get the
meaning across.
The people were mostly
illiterate peasants with a few
intellectuals scattered among
them. To many, seeing a
doctor was a novel experi­
ence. To many others the
rules of hygiene we preach­
ed appeared quaint and im­
practical—yet we were per­
sistent and soon they began
learn and understand.
One of us used to visit the
huts daily to see the very
sick and the disabled and to
direct some of the others to
RETORT

“What have we done to deserve this fate” ? Women and children
have been unfortunate victims of the large scale massacre. They
have been accosted, abused, injured and insulted.

Every day is a rainy day. The long, never ending Queue of
the refugees for bread and milk.
Our countrymen have at last
come forward to aid the refugees with food, clothing and money.

our dispensary. This gave
us an opportunity to see for
ourselves their living condi­
tions and become familiar
with their habits and social
customs. On these visits
we would come across little
children swinging on make­
shift swings, little groups of
refugees gathered round a
village musician singing his
baols and twanging on the
ektara. or listening to a
reading of our epics or some
other mythological book.
We saw men hard at work
making fishing nets or split­
ting bamboo for fishing
traps. We learnt that a
majority of them were
peasants who supplemented
their income by fishing in
the numerous rivers and
streams of their homeland.
We were naturally very
keen to hear their versions
of the present crisis. Some

July-Oct.

1971

were keen on sharing their
experiences; others were
reticent perhaps with sor­
row.
We met old ladies
who had been separated
from their families during
the long exodus and were
now living off the charity of
their neighbours. We saw
orphans and widows. We
heard of families killed or
separated. We heard of
the shooting of innocent
people, burning and looting
of houses — a hundred first
hand repetitions of news­
paper reports and stories.
We visited the borders and
saw for ourselves the amaz­
ing exodus—young and old,
able and disabled—people
with a will to live making
strenuous journeys, eyes full
of pain and despair with
here and there a ray of
hope at the thought of hav­
ing reached India. India

was their refuge, their new
home—in fact, al that point.
eveiything to them.
The first few weeks we
regarded them just as a
large mass of unlucky
humanity but as days went
by we came to know them
better. They had their idio­
syncrasies and their foolish
superstitions. They were
irregular in their treatment
and often did not follow
instructions. Some were
over-enthusiastic ; others
were plain lazy. Some were
demanding ; others unas­
suming. Above all, we
found them to be human.
We shall never forget the
night the young men of the
camp invited us to a con­
cert of folk songs. We were
with them for over two
hours, no! as doctors and
patients but as one large
family lost for a short while
in the strains of rural music
oblivious to the suffering
that was their lot. They
showed their gratitude in
many other ways. They
tried offering us part of their
rations. They invited us to
their homes and often help­
ed us with our work in little
ways to show their apprecia­
tion.
A month slipped by and
soon the second month was
coming to an end and we
began wondering what the
experience had meant to us.
It was time to leave and we
realised that we had really
come to enjoy it.
The
thought of leaving all those
people, whose health and

Will she survive ?

lives had been temporarily
ln our hands, was upnerniost in our minds.
each one of us has that
streak of Tom Dooley and
Albert Schweitzer, then this
Experience had brought us
tu contact with it. We had
come with the idea of help­
ing these people. We were
leaving with a sense of grati­
tude to them for giving us
on opportunity to find our­
selves and discover a true
sense of fulfilment.

(Continued from page 9)
month is given at the
Film Institute at Poona
provided
that the
candidate is receiving
no
other financial
assistance and that
he signs a bond to
serve the Government
for 2 years.
3) Some scholarships are
calculated to ridicule
unity and integration—
eg. Rs. 50 per month
awarded specially to
students who take
Kannada as their main
subject. There is no
need to mention simi­
lar scholarships for
those who take up
Hindi.
4) Scholarships for the
physically handicapped
(blind, deaf, dumb) is
all of a grand Rs. 15
per month\ And, sub­
ject to an age limit of
18 years’.

Families have been broken—lost and dead.

11

midmg
COMMUNITY HEALTH NEEDS AND INDIA’S
DRUG INDUSTRY.
A brief six page
note prepared by Dr. Debabar
Banerjee, Professor, Centre for
Social Medicine and Community
Health, JNU, New Delhi 110067.

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a critique of the IFPMA code by
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Very relevant for all personnel
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55

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Standing up to cyclone havoc
HE severe cyclonic storm from the Bay
of Bengal that hit the coastal districts of
Bangladesh on April 29-30, 1991 and killed
an estimated two lakhs people was similar to
the one that devastated the same area on
November 11-12, 1970 and wrought the
same degree of havoc.

T

At the request of the Government of Paki­
stan that was ruling East Pakistan the U.N.
General Assembly directed the World Me­
teorological Organisation (WMO) to do the
needful and the WMO Congress appointed
in April 1971 a committee of eight interna­
tional technical experts including one from
Bangladesh, under the chairmanship of this
writer who was a vice-president of the WMO
at that time.

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The last meeting held in Bangladesh was
in Dhaka in 1989. As protection of lives and
property during and after cyclones is one of
the most important responsibilities of the
WMO it has a permanent programme to ad­
vise needy member-countries.

Tropical cyclones over the Bay of Bengal
occur in two distinct seasons, the pre-mon-

The committee studied the problem and
submitted its report to WMO in 1973. A
tropical cyclone project was prepared by the
WMO for adoption by cyclone-prone countr­
ies all over the world. The Government of In­
dia and the Governments of Andhra Pradesh,
Orissa and West Bengal appointed the cyclone distress mitigation committee (CDMC)
for the coastal States under the chairmanship
of the writer during 1970-75 and action was
initiated to implement their recommendations.
The WMO set up an inter-governmental
panel of experts from countries subject to
tropical cyclones over the Bay of Bengal
and the Arabian Sea. The panel meets periodically to review the arrangements for the
rapid exchange of cyclone warnings be-.
tween the countries concerned and updated
actions taken by their Governments to edu­
cate the public in the coastal districts and to
✓ ep the district authorities fully prepared to
xt the people from the cyclones before,
g and after their onslaught.

soon months of April-May and the post-mon­
soon months of October-November. The In­
dia Meteorological Department (IMD) had
published the tracks or the cyclones since
1891 and updates them every year in its
quarterly scientific journal, "Mausam". As 90
per cent of the deaths in severe cyclones all
overs the world occur in high storm surges
accompanying them the only feasible
method to save the lives of human beings

and animals is to evacuate them to safe in­
land cyclone shelters as early as possible af­
ter the receipt of advance cyclone warnings
from the Meteorological Department. The
evacuation of people is difficult in flat coastal
districts as in Bangladesh where the tides of
six to 10 metres above the sea level sub­
merges offshore islands and travels inland
for considerable distances.
Soon after the liberation of Bangladesh, its
first Prime Minister, Mujibur Rahman, re­
quested India’s Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi,
to depute a team of experts on water man­
agement for mutual discussions and the latter
sent a delegation to Dhaka under the leader­
ship of Dr. K. L Rao, the then Minister for
Irrigation and Power. As a member of the
delegation and Director-General of IMD this
writer was requested to prepare a cyclone
disaster mitigation plan for Bangladesh
which was done in collaboration with Mr.
Mowla, the then Director of the Bangladesh
Meteorological Department and a report
was submitted to their Government Mujibur
Rahman was impressed upon the primary
need to evacuate the people from the off­
shore islands to inland locations by providing
them with boats. As severe cyclones hit once
in five or 10 years it should not be very diffi­
cult to collect and store enough boats for
evacuation of all island dwellers or insist
upon the families living on the islands to
have their own boats for protection and
evacuation.
The present decade has been designated
by the U.N. as the "Decade of Natural Haz­
ard Reduction — DNHR" and a world con­
gress on the subject was to be held in New
Delhi in February 1991, but it has been post­
poned to January 1992. With the coopera­
tion of specialised agencies like the WMO,
the U.N. Environmental Programme (UNEP).

the _U.N. Disaster Relief Organisation
(UNDRO), etc., it will be possible to update
the world tropical cyclone project and save
lives and property in natural disasters all
over the world.
Some environmentalists have speculated
that the rise in the sea level in the recent cyc­
lone might have been due to global warming.
Although global warming of the atmosphere
due to the increase in pollution by industries
and agriculture has occurred all over the
world, its magnitude is small — about half a
degree Celsius and it may take a few more
decades to produce a general rise in the sea
level owing to the melting of polar ice-caps.
The natural rise in the sea level owing to high
tides and storm surges in tropical cyclones
have always to be taken care of and the peo­
ple and animals shifted to safe zones before
they are drowned by storm surges.

It is essential that ships at sea should
monitor cyclone warnings issued every three
hours by IMD by radio, avoid entering the
eyes of cyclones and save their passengers
from the harrowing experience of the ship.
M.V. Najd-ll in the recent cyclone. Mariners
at sea have serious responsibilities to save
the passengers in their ships similar to those
of administrators of coastal districts in the
matter of protection of the people from the
cyclones. In the pre-monsoon months of
April-May, Norwesters locally called 'Kai
Balshakis’. accompanied by severe tornado­
es devastate several districts of Bangladesh
and north-eastern India frequently and seri­
ously hamper relief operations.,These will
have to be taken care of by the governments
concerned.

P. Koteswaram
Retd. Director-General of Observatories

J ■

Khaleda may seek
more aid from

Saudi Arabia
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 26.
The Bangladesh Prime Minister. Begum
Khaleda Zia. whose first foreign trip was to New
Delhi to attend the funeral of Rajiv Gandhi, is
now in the Saudi Arabia’s capital at the start of
her first official visit abroad. She was given a
rousing reception by the Saudi monarch.
Begum Zia's current five-day visit to Saudi •
Arabia. Kuwait and UAE has amply demonstrat­
ed her government's keen desire to expand bilat­
eral ties between Bangladesh and the Islamic
Ummah. The "goodwill visit" by Begum Zia to
the three Arabian countries was earlier postpon­
ed twice due to cyclone and tidal surge.
Some of the Arabian countries, especially the
Saudi Arabia, responded generously to her call
for help to face the recent calamity. Riyadh gave
$ 106 millions as relief assistance topping the list
of nations that gave assistance^) Bangladesh in.
the wake of the cyclone. During her talks with
King Fahd and other high ranking Saudi leaders.
^informed circles said, she is expected to invite
greater Arabian assistance to rebuild Bangla­
desh’s economy.
While meeting the Secretary General of the
Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), Mr.
Hamid Al-Gabid, in Jeddah on Saturday, the
Bangladesh Prime Minister was categorical that
her Government would follow the policies of her
husband, late President Gen. Zia-ur-Rahman, who
first established special relations with the Ara­
bian monarchs after the independence of the
country in 1971.

Coping with natural calc
HEN the Indian Science Congress As­
sociation chose "Coping with Natural
Disasters" as the focal theme for its Indore
session held in January this year it would
have least imagined that so soon thereafter
the closest neighbour of India. Bangladesh.
would be hit with the worst-ever cyclone, re­
sulting in loss of nearly a million lives be­
sides extensive damage to property.

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Nor would the World Health Organisation
(WHO) have expected this within a month of
its celebration of the World Health Day on
April 7 with the main slogan: "Should Disas­
ter Strike — Be Prepared". The declaration
by the United Nations of the 1990s as the
International Decade for Natural Disaster Re­
duction (IDNDR) prompted the two organisa­
tions to draw the.attention of the world to the
ways of tackling natural disasters and the
holocaust in Bangladesh seems to provide,
as it were, a live demonstration of the vari­
ous issues raised and debated at these two ,
fora.
According to WHO data, there has been a
marked increase in the disaster situation over
the years. The number of disasters during a
60-year period between 1900 and 1960 total­
led, 4,098. whereas in a much shorter span of
30 years from 1960 to 1989, the number tot­
alled 3,380. Regionwise figures show that
eastern Mediterranean accounted for 312
events in the first 60 years of the current cen­
tury and 281 in the next 30 years. The corre­
sponding figures for Europe were 495 and
384; for South East Asia 645 and 560; West­
ern Pacific 748 and 598;.Africa 850 and 734
and America 1048 and 823.

Even though south-east Asia region ranks
only fourth among the most disaster-prone
regions in the world, the high density of
population in the region is found to result in
the disaster effects being felt by the largest
number of people. For instance, during the
devastating floods of Bangladesh in 1988 at
least 25 million people were reported to have
lost their homes.

Within the south-east Asian region,
Bangladesh had faced over 100 disasters of
various types. Of these, cyclone had hit 32
times, taking a toll of four lakh lives and in­
juring six lakhs and .Effecting 26 millions.
Floods had hit 22 times affecting 190 million

people. The other disasters included acci­
dents. drought, epidemic, earthquake, fire.
landslide and storm. During this period. India
was hit by 191 natural disasters, Indonesia
142, Nepal 27 and Thailand 26. Concerned
over the situation, the WHO had organised
inter-regional meetings on disaster prepared­
ness for health planners and taken steps to
strengthen the efforts of member-countries in
the region in disaster preparedness, as it is
admitted that natural disasters cannot be pre­
vented, but only their impact mitigated.
Recorded history and mythology are pep­
pered with natural disasters. The present
century has added a new ecological dimen­
sion to the definition of disaster. Chemical
and nuclear catastrophes, oil spills, pollution
of air, water and soil, desertification and the
greenhouse effect have all driven home the
simple truth that development can be de­
structive. As a WHO spokesman noted on
the occasion of the World Health Day last
month, if the last Ice Age brought about the
biggest climatic changes in human history,
now the world is awakening to the prospects
of global weather getting changed by human
activities.

often highlighted. Lying in the de
mighty rivers — the Ganga, the Br
and the Meghna — with their 230
it faces floods as regular annual t
one that hit it in 1988 was then de
the^ worst in living memory. As
low countries in the region. Bangl
suffers from storm surges from 1
Bengal crushing everything In sigf
km upriver. The cyclone in 1970 t
toll of two lakhs lives besides milli
stock. In May 1985 there was a
the Bay of Bengal which deva
southern coast of Bangladesh, wi|
entire coastal island with over 11.C

But repeated natural disasters s
ed the resilience of the communit
them. Mr. Mohamed Fazl, Assistar
Bangladesh Times claimed on th
of World Health Day in April thi;
quoted an official of the Directora
of Health Services as saying. "If
strikes now we are in better p
handle it". He would least have im?
in less than a month a disaster wot
strike and test the community's pre
to tackle it.
A model plan of action for relief
The build-up of carbon dioxide and other bilitation had been drawn up for b
heat trapping gases in the atmosphere — ies (upazilas) in Bangladesh and if
which is known as the Greenhouse Effect — ceed it will be replicated in other
may bring about truly catastrophic conse­ that have been identified as most
quences, from prolonged drought to a rise in to disasters. The selected countrk
the sea level. If the latter happens, low lying of the network of disaster pre
cities such as Bangkok, Calcutta, Dhaka, strategy at the multi-sectoral and I
Hanoi, Karachi and Shanghai, among the tor levels. Besides this, a 15-poin
most densely populated and sprawling habi­ and long-term plan has been dri
tats in the world, would be under water. This mitigate and prevent the effects of
warning was given by the WHO on the occa­ These include dredging of rivers.
sion of the World Health Day in April this ment of flood warning systems, cc
year.
• of embankments and shifting of f<
At the Indore Science Congress, a Cana­ houses to higher lands and moder
dian-based Indian scientist Dr. T. S. Murthy. country boats. The community is b<
had stated that the Greenhouse Effect would tized to disaster preparedness i
not only raise the mean sea level, but also basic techniques to deal with em
Intensify cyclones, generating even greater Mr. Fazl had claimed. How
storm surges. In fact, he predicted that very measures have been effective in
strong tropical cyclones, referred to as cyclone is yet to be assessed.
As the Presidential Address of
hypercanes with central pressure as low as
800 mb might occur. Currently, the lowest Sinha at the Indore Science Conan
observed central pressure in a tropical cyc­ there has been no dearth of effc
over on disaster mitigation, pre|
lone Js 870 mb.
______
The vulnerability of Bangladesh has been and response at various levels. Bui

US force to leave
Bangla in June
Dhaka, May 22 (PTI): The United States task force, engaged in
“Operation Sea Angel” relief
mission and enjoying diplomatic
immunity under a memorandum
of understanding signed with
Bangladesh Government, would
leave the country in the middle of
June, press reports said.
“We have no plan to increase
the number of troops. We haven't
come here to stay,” task force
commander Maj Gen Henry
Stackpole now in Chittagong was
quoted by Bengaly Daily Sangbad
as saying.

Stackpole s statement comes
three days after a newspaper said
11,000 more US troops would
arrive in Bangladesh jn the second
phase of the relief operation to
join the 7,001) marine troops now
providing relief to millions of hungry and homeless in coastal areas
and offshore islands.
Bangladesh Foreign Secretary
Abdul Ahsan said after signing
the MOU that the task force
would stay here as long as the
Government wanted them to. He,
however, did not specify the
period.

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Legal] sowf for y„S.
pKsseo'i!©® on BangBadleslh
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 19.
Washington and Dhaka will soon sign an
agreement to facilitate the operation of the U.S.
task force in the cyclone-hit areas of Bangla­
desh. The task force is already in Chittagong and
the proposed agreement will give a "legal cover"
for the Americans’ presence.
Foreign Ministry sources said the agreement
would determine the areas of work by the U.S.
troops and their duration of stay. It would also
provide details of the operation by the nearly
8,000 troops, mostly marines, in the cyclone-bat­
tered areas. An estimated 2.00,000 people died
and the houses of lakhs of others were destroy­
ed.
Brig. Shafat Ahmed. Director of Operation and
Planning, Supreme Command headquarters, told
media persons that the task force had brought
30 helicopters. It would set up 36 water purifying
plants,' each with a capacity to produce 12,000
gallens of drinking water.

Protest in Dhaka
UNI. DPA & PTI report:
On Saturday, opposition activists and freedom
fighters staged demonstrations in the capital in
protest against the presence of the U.S. troops in
the southern region. The demonstrations were or­
ganised by the Muktijoddah Sanghati Parishad
(MSP), an organisation of freedom fighters and
pro-left Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal.
Addressing the demonstrators. Col. (Rtd)
Sawkat Ali, M.P. and leader of the MSP, said the
presence of the U.S. troops in the name of relief
operations threatened the country’s indepen­
dence and sovereignty.
On the Sandwip island, hundreds of people
danced and banged their empty pots and pans
to welcome the U.S. marines, who arrived there
with food and medical supplies. The marines
transported more than 200 tonnes of relief goods
by helicopter.
Diarrhoea toll: Diarrhoea
deaths in the
cyclone-affected areas rose from 381 to 624, an
official spokesman said on Saturday night.
Reports from the Sandwip island said more
people died of the epidemic. The total number of
people affected by diarrhoea in the cyclone-hit
areas rose to 131,549.

‘No coordination’: Mr. Saidur Rahman, local
head of the British charity Oxfam, said there was
an utter lack of coordination among different
government agencies. "Nobody seems to realise
the urgency of the situation," an aid official said.
A French relief plane had been forced to sit on
the tarmac for three days before it was allowed
to unload its cargo.
The delay and the apparent confusion stem
from a dual administration that has been running
the country since the Prime Minister, Begum
Khaleda Zia, took over in March following the
general elections. The interim President, Mr.
Shababuddm Ahmed, is the constitutional head,
while Begum Zia enjoys greater moral authority
since her Bangladesh Nationalist Party is the
largest group in Parliament
Diplomats say the dual administration is com­
plicated by the presence of the army, which
wields considerable influence on national poli­
tics. The airport is controlled by the civil aviation.
the customs and the military, and when a relief
plane arrives it takes a long time to find out who
is incharge, several agencies complained.
A government spokesman, Mr. Manzur-e- <
Moula, said goods worth over $341 million dol- '■
lars had reached the country. He admitted the ,
problem, saying the airport was already stretch­
ing its facilities. Opposition members in Parlia­
ment alleged that relief goods were surfacing in
the markets. They said corrupt airport and cus­
toms officials were being bribed by traders to
coax them into selling the goods.

Rain submerges shelters
DHAKA, May 19.
Thirty-one flood shelters in northeastern
Bangladesh were submerged as rain pounded
most of the country overnight There was an
acute shortage of drinking water as most of the
water pumps were also submerged.
"The situation in Balaganj sub-district is grave
as it is in the middle of the Surma and Kushiara
rivers, which have burst their banks following the
heavy downpour and runoff from the Garo hills
in neighbouring India.
More than half of the tea-growing Sylhet town
was under water and telecommunication was1
severed, causing hardship to the flood victims.
Some families were living on small boats — AFP

■Mr.’Nathan, 64, said, —Reuter, EFE-PTI, iRNA

Fmlh storm ko!Sfc 25
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DHAKA. May 20.
A fresh storm lashed Bangladesh's cyclonebattered i&ast, killing at least 25 people, injuring
up to 500 and destroying homes and crops, offi­
cials said today. The storm struck on Sunday
evening at a speed of 192 km an hour flattening
thousands of homes, uprooting trees, disrupting
power supplies and destroying crops. "Losses
are widespread. Corrugated sheets torn from
roofs were blown away like paper and trees
were lifted,hundreds of metres from the ground,"
one official said.
“This has added to the country’s unending tra­
gedy," said an official at Gournado, one of the
worst-hit areas. The other badly-affected area
was Agoiljhara, part of the densely populated
Barisal coastal district.

Villagers told reporters in Barisal that more
than 50 had been killed in Sunday's storm and at
least 1,000 were injured. The official BSS news
agency said 90 per cent of homes and 70 per
cent of rice and other crops were destroyed. Meteorologists said that major rivers in the area, ineluding the Kushiara and Khowai, were dangerously high and incessant rain overnight had sub­
merged more areas.
The Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia, is
planning a four-day tour of Saudi Arabia and two
other West Asian countries from May 25 to explain the magnitude of the disaster and discuss
aid, Government sources said today.—Reuter.

‘a

May 19, 1991

Life five feet above the
N 1970, half a million people
died after a cyclone brought
floods to Bangladesh. Last mon­
th, the toll topped 100,000. In
the intervening 20 years, many
thousands of others have been
swept out to sea.
In a country which is already
among the poorest of the poor,
those who have died have been
the most destitute. They were
vulnerable to the elements in
this way because they were so
poor: there was nowhere else in
Bangladesh for them to go. The
increasing cruelty of the climate
which surrounded them was only
one of the hazards of life they
have been forced to accept.

I

By Michael Simmons
But as this week’s death toll
mounts and the suffering of the
survivors intensifies, the expec­
tation is growing among Western
experts that disasters on this
scale in the Bay of Bengal must
be counted more rather than less
likely in the next few years.
“By the end of the. next
century,” said the New York­
based Worldwatch Institute in
its last State of the World re­
port, “Bangladesh as it is known
today may virtually have ceased
to exist.”
According to United Nations
estimates, nearly 20 million
people — one in six or more of
the population — living on about

1 5 per cent of the land area are
threatened with “total inunda­
tion” if the sea level rises by five
feet. Another 10 million would
be affected if the rise were in the
region of 10 feet. The tidal wave,
driven by last month’s cyclone,
was 20 feet high.
But large areas of Bangladesh
— roughly 80 per cent of the
total land mass — arc only five
feet or less above the surround­
ing sea level. An additional pro­
blem is that coastal storm ero­
sion in the delta area is more
risk-laden than almost anywhere
else in the world.

-THE
number of people at
A risk, and the risk itself, in­

tensify as global warming causes
the sea level to rise. “This
means,” says Dick Warrick, at
East Anglia University’s clima­
tic research unit, “that future
tidal waves will come from a
higher sea level and will there­
fore submerge more land. This is
a possibility that needs to be
taken very seriously.”
Worldwatch says the green­
house effect means that the
earth’s average temperature will
go up by 5 degrees Centigrade
or more over the next 100 years.
The global sea level is rising at
the rate of about an inch every
20 years, and the warmer the
sea, the greater its volume. Huge
masses of water flowing into the
Bay of Bengal from the Ganges,

Ships dumped on the shore by wind

uni/afp photos

Hands of the famished reach for airdropi
worst hit cyclone area
the Brahmaputra and other riv­
ers, add to the dangers of the
Bangladeshis’ situation.
The Bay of Bengal, says Mr.
Warrick, is a perfect funnel for
any winds which drive the sea
northwards. Cox’s Bazaar and
Chittagong and the offshore
islands in this area are where
these winds, and the accompa­
nying tidal wave, first hit land.
Cyclones can be expected as thesea temperature rises in the
context of a severe tropical de­
pression.
But why, it may be asked, do
so many people die when the
disaster is more or le’ss predict­
able? The answer, according to
Allister McGregor, lecturer in
development studies at Bath
University, is poverty, Twothirds of the people of Bangla­
desh live below the World
Health
Organisation
poverty
line, and half the rural popula­
tion do not get enough to eat.

~ ’Wsmag'azifie.’ But

'

At the s
proportion <
landless and
are landles.‘
their own
gravitated
those places
been deposi
have formed
are no dispu
“These j
McGregor,
rest,, and th
risk. It is li
precipice. I
they are the
highest pric<
He adds
tense awarer
total inabilit
do anything
constrained,own poverty

'T'HE rural
helped
much
of
“assistance”

US, team fe
Baogbdesb Forage Office
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 16.
An unspecified number of marines of the U.S.
has arrived on the Chittagong coast of Bangla­
desh to begin their work in the cyclone and tidal
surge battered areas. A Foreign Office spokes­
man said today that the U.S. task force was ex­
pected to stay in Bangladesh for two weeks
when it would provide emergency relief assist­
ance to the people. Many political parties and
student organisations have protested the pres­
ence of the U.S. marines in the country’s coastal
areas.
In an apparent response to parliament dis­
cussion and condemnation by a section of the
Opposition, the Foreign Office explained that al­
though the task force, the biggest foreign troops
to land in Bangladesh so far would stay here for
about two weeks a wing of the water purification
unit and the small helicopters would stay back to
continue relief operations.

The Commander of the force. Gen. Stackpole.
who visited the cyclone affected areas on Tues­
day along with the American Ambassador and
the Bangladesh Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen.
Nooruddin Khan, said that colossal damage was
done to the infrastructure in the Chittagong coas­
tal belt. He said his force was moving to Chitta­
gong to install their "operation base" from where
five military helicopters would be operating in
carrying relief goods.
The Bangladesh Foreign Office explained that
the task force which is of brigade strength com­
prises two big ships including the Tarawa and six
following ships. The Tarawa has 27 helicopters
and several landing crafts which have a remark­
able movement capacity in areas battered by
cyclone. About 250 of the task force will work
on the shore while the rest will stay in the mother
ship and come for relief work when required.
The mother ship will remain in the international
waters 40 km from the shore somewhere be­
tween Cox’s Bazar and Kutubdia.

The Foreign Office also said that the members
of the team and those who would work on the
shore would not carry any arms and are essen­
tially non-combatant The advance team compris­

says

!'7'5 -t?/

ing 29 members were expected to leave after
two weeks. Those who would stay back to conti­
nue relief operations include five "black hawk"
small helicopters which could ferry 6,000 pounds
in each sortie.
The U.S. General explained that his task force
comprised mainly engineers and communication
experts in uniform as they were drawn from de­
fence services which were engaged in the Gulf
war. When a newspaper correspondent asked
him about the period of their stay in Bangladesh,
the U.S. General paused for a while and said "In
the next few weeks time I think they can re­
cover." Gep Stackpole said he would work in
cooperation with both the U.S. Ambassador in
Dhaka and the Bangladesh Army.

Former P.M. arrested
AFP reports:
The police arrested here on Thursday the for­
mer Prime Minister, Mr. Kazi Zafar Ahmed, who
was in hiding since the President. Mr. Hussain
Mohammad Ershad's ouster in December, wit­
nesses said. Mr. Ahmed, who won a parliamen­
tary seat in the February general elections while
in hiding to evade arrest, was picked up by the
police this morning near the parliament building
in central Dhaka.

opposition pairty
objects to U.S. marine presence
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 15.
In an effort to tackle the recurrent cyclone
problem the Bangladesh Government has de­
cided to construct multipurpose buildings in the
coastal and cyclone-prone offshore areas of the
country to be used as shelters during the calam­
ity and warehouses of emergency relief ma­
terials.
The Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia, says
that in normal times these buildings will be used
as schools and hospitals, but they will hold suffi­
cient stock of food and medicines so that relief
operations could be launched soon after disaster
strikes. The Prime Minister has sought interna­
tional assistance in making this gigantic pro­
gramme a success.
Soldiers not needed: A section of the Opposi­
tion has strongly criticised the Government for
inviting the U.S. marines in the name of relief
work while there was no protest from the main­
stream Opposition. The Central leader of the
Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League
(BAKSAU. a partner of the Awami League led
by Sheikh Hasina, Mr. Abdur Razzak, sees some
foul play in the arrival of the U.S. marines in the
coastal belt. He has demanded a "clear cut ex­
planation" of the Government on the deployment
of-foreign troops. Mr. Razzak said that Bangla­
desh needed aid and assistance, but not the soldiets. "We have our own people and soldiers.
we don't need the Americans." said other organi­
sations including the Muslim Chhatra League.
The U.S. Task Force Commander General. Mr.
Stackpole, met the Acting President, Justice
Shahabuddin Ahmed, on Tuesday and explained
to him the purpose and method of operation of
their relief mission, which will be concentrated in
the Chittagong area. Justice Shahabuddin ap­
preciated the "good gesture and assistance" so
quickly offered by the U.S. President, Mr.
George Bush. It is learnt that the U.S. military
delegation will formulate phase-wise programme
for relief and rehabilitation.
Return from Saudi Arabia: The first batch of
more than 400 officers and troops of Bangladesh
military contingent returned home from Saudi
Arabia in the early hours of Tuesday. Welcoming

the officers and troops at a reception arranged
at the airport. Begum Khaleda Zia. said the na­
tion was proud of their role and performance in
the defence of the holy land.

Speaker allays fears
PTI reports.
The Speaker of Bangladesh Parliament, Mr.
Abdur Rahman Biswas told the House today that
the country's sovereignty would not be under­
mined by the presence of the U.S. troops, which
had arrived to carry out relief oeprations in the
cyclone-affected areas.
Mr. Rashed Khan Menon, a member of the
Workers' Party, said the issue was very serious
in view of the fact that the U S. Government in
the past had made several pleas to enter Bangla­
desh and to set up a base at St. Martin Island

Govt, allocation: The Bangladesh Government
has allocated taka ten crores for the rehabilita­
tion of the farmers in the cyclone-affected areas
as reports of more international assistance con­
tinued to pour in. Under the agricultural rehabili­
tation programme, the farmers would be provi­
ded with seeds, fertilizers and inputs including
pumpsets to bale out the saline water following
the tidal surge, an official spokesman said.

EC aid: The European Community Foreign
Ministers agreed on Tuesday on a $78 million
aid package for Bangladesh. Each member of
the 12 nation community will contribute to the
fund in proportion to its gross national product.

>

dlAA.

Food convoy Stocked
m Bangladesh
DHAKA. May 15.
Survivors of last month's devastating cyclone
in Bangladesh blocked roads in Hathazari region
of Chittagong district on Tuesday in protest
against the hijack of food trucks by thieves.
The Bangla Bani daily said the angry people
took over 13 trucks, took them to a local market
and forced other traffic off the road. The
protestors also damaged one relief truck.
The daily said, the survivors later handed the
trucks over to police who pounded them saying
that the drivers had failed to prove their creden­
tials. — AP

1777

rc.

200 drowned
in Bangla
DHAKA, May 14. (UNI) —
About 200 people were feared
drowned in the Jamuna river as scores
of boats and motor launches sank
during a severe storm which hit the
northern district of Bangladesh, re­
ports said today.
At least 50 fishing boats and three
loaded ferries were missing after last
evening's storm. The Bangladesh
Times said quoting police officials. A
motor launch with about 50 zero
passengers and an oil tanker also in the
river.
The United News of Bangladesh
(UNB) said two ferries were grounded
al Char island in Rajbari, about 120
km away from here, but the launches
could not yet be traced. Another .
motor launch anchored at the Daulatdia Ferry Ghat sank near pontoon

Five bodies were recovered and
local administration officials were
searching for the missing ones.

Fresh storm hits
fesugOadesh
au
DHAKA, May 14
About 200 persons were feared drowned in
the river Brahmaputra as a large number of
vessels sank when a severe storm hit seven subdistncts of Manikganj. northwest of Dhaka, last
evening, reports reaching here said today.
Five bodies have been recovered from the
river. Scores were injured and nearly 3.000
houses damaged, a report here said.
At least 50 fishing boats, three fully loaded
ferries and three pontoons were missing till mid­
night yesterday. A motor launch with about 50
passengers and an oil tanker also sank in the
river.
The storm with a velocity of more than 100 km
per hour uprooted more than 50 electric poles.
disrupting power supply. Telecommunication of
the district headquarters with the subdistricts
was also snapped. — Xinhua

fBarngfadsslh a©£mg Piresidfemt
From Haroon Habib

southern coast.
The "bipartisanship character” of the govern­
ment has also led to criticism from donors, many
of whom have reportedly opined that such a set­
up has hampered relief activities.
Mr. Shahabuddin, who has till now shown little
interest in remaining in office, has said repeated­
ly that under the existing Constitution he has no
scope to handover power to the speaker of Par­
liament In fact it is the broad consensus of ex­
perts that unless the system of Government is
changed by amending the constitution or a new
President takes office through the scheduled
polls, the question of transfer of power will be
delayed. But the BNP Minister was categorical in
saying that power could be transferred if the act­
ing President wants to do so.
To avoid possible hitch between the Prime
Minister’s office and President's Secretariat, Mr.
Shahabuddin has already transfered a number of
his responsibilities to Begum j^haleda Zia to
meet the day-to-day exigencies. The handing
over of the relief godown and relief coordination
cell was one such move.
Media allegation: Meanwhile, the western me­
dia including the British Broadcasting Corpor
ation (BBC), has reported that there was a feel­
ing that the armed forces did not fully engage
themselves in relief work and that they joined
work sometime after the cyclone struck. The
armed forces are under the President. The order
of mobilisation came a week after the Principal
Staff Officer of the Supreme Commander (the
President is the Supreme Commander) was put
BNP’s feeler: But Mrs. Khaleda Zia is possibly under the Prime Minister.
The acting President's office did not come out
little interested in going for the Parliamentary1
system, although informed political quarters with any statement on the assertion of the BNP
thought that she may reconsider her stand and Minister. There was no official demand from the
not take an unnecessary risk by holding a presi­ Prime Minister's office for Mr. Shahabuddin’s
dential poll within a few months. Political ana­ resignation either. Contradicting a newspaper re­
lysts see the assertion of Mr. Nazmul Huda. a port alleging lack of coordination between the
close aide of Mr. Khaleda, as the feeler of the President and the Prime Minister, the Govern­
BNP administration wh’ch is being criticised by ment recently came out with a detailed state­
media both at home and abroad for falling to co­ ment. But the confusion in the minds of the peo­
ordinate emergency relief work to bring succour ple could hardly be erased. It is rather increasing
to the millions of cyclone victims in the country's day by day.
*

DHAKA. May 14.
The issue of transfer of power to the elected
representatives in Bangladesh, that remained in
the background due to the unprecedented natu­
ral calamity, is back in the news. This time the
vital question has been raised by a senior mem­
ber of the Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia’s
Bangladesh National Party (BNP), creating an
awkward situation for the acting President. Mr
Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed.
The acting President is said to be under press­
ure to resign and handover power to Parliament
which according to the Opposition, is far from
‘sovereign’ under the present system. The State
Minister for Food. Mr. Nazmull Huda, told Parlia­
ment on Sunday that Mr. Shahabuddin could
easily handover power to the "Jatiya Sangsad”
under the existing constitutional provisions. His
assertion has given rise to a notion that despite
the provisions available the acting President is
holding on to power and prolonging "bipartisan­
ship”.
As per the Constitution, which now sticks to
the presidential system, the acting President is
the Head of the State and Government as well.
Bu+. for all practical purposes. Begum Khaleda
Zia has been cunning the Government though
without valid sanction. In fact, even under the
Presidential system, the powers and functions of
the Prime Minister show that the Parliamentary
system has been workable and it now needs
only a statutory cover.

0.5,. task feire® m Dhaka
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 13.
In response to a request of the Bangladesh
Government, the U.S. President, Mr. George
Bush, has ordered the Department of Defence to
provide immediate assistance to supplement
Bangladesh's efforts to recover from the last
month’s devastating cyclone and tidal surge. The
Commander-in-Chief, Pacific. Admiral Charles R.
Larson, has already despatched a joint task force
which arrived here on Sunday.

The joint task force is commanded by Major
General Henry Stackpole who is heading a 29member military delegation. A Bangladesh De­
fence Ministry press release said that the U.S.
military delegation which brought with them
some relief goods and specialised equipment for
the restoration of telecommunication and emerg­
ency medical aid. would assess as to how far the
U.S. armed forced could render physical assist­
ance in overcoming the effects of the cyclone.
A U.S. embassy press release said, on the
way are five helicopters and crews, air traffic
control teams, seabees (construction brigade)
and environmental preventive medicine units.
They will reach Bangladesh by early May 15.
The Fifth Marine Expeditionary Brigade embark­
ed aboard the U.S.S. Tarawa and other amphibi­
ous ships, now homebased at the Marine Corps
Base. Camp Pendleton. California. They left the
Persian Gulf on May 7 for the U.S. with a stop in
the Philippines when they were diverted to assist
in the humanitarian efforts in Bangladesh.

would provide $ 100.000 to the cyclone victims
of Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Finance and
Planning Minister. Mr. Saifur Rahman, has said
that the country would be requiring at least $ 3
billions to fully rehabilitate the damage and de­
struction caused by the recent catastrophe.
British sources said that seven leading charit­
ies have decided to launch a major joint appeal
to bring further relief supplies to the victims. The
action was agreed upon by the Joint Disasters
Emergency Committee in London after detailed
discussions on the catastrophic cyclone and the
tidal surge. The British Government's aid to
Bangladesh has been raised to £6.5 millions.
Britain has also increased to four the number of
Sea King heavy lift helicopters it is sending to
Bangladesh.
PTI reports
The Bangladesh Government, which is assess­
ing the extent of damage to its economy, has
been assured by donors and international finan­
cial institutions such as the World Bank and the
Asian Development Bank of support in the reha­
bilitation programme, Mr. Chowdhury said.

52 more killed
in Bangla floods
DHAKA, May 13. (Reuter) —
Floods brought fresh havoc to Ban­
gladesh, killing 52 more people as a
U.S. task force arrived to help save
millions still battling for survival after
last month's devastating cyclone.
Officials said the north-eastern town
of Sylhet was' inundated after the
Surma River burst its banks. About
52 people drowned in Sylhet and the
Moulvi bazar area, bringing the death
toll in floods to 200 in a week.
About one million people in the
area were marooned by the rising
waters, which have engulfed an area of
656 sq. km.,’
,

Bangladesh, till April 12. has received external
aid commitment to the tune of $218.01 millions.
Mr. Enam Ahmed Chowdhury, Secretary, Exter­
nal Affairs Division, said that the latest country to
offer aid is Bruni Darussalam, when it said it

■ India to
rash rice
i

NEW DELHI, May 13. (PTI) —
• Keeping with the commitment made
by the Prime Minister, India today
decided to rush 5,000 tonnes of rice
and a railway expert to Bangladesh to
study how it could help in the recon­
struction of railway networks damaged
in the cyclone.
An official spokesman told newsm­
en that the rice, which is urgently
required, would start moving by sur­
face route through the border town of
Benapolc in West Bengal.

India offers rice to Bangla

da/

DHAKA, May 12. (PTI) — India sman said as of now 1.26.000 people reduce the effects. of the unprece­
today offered Bangladesh rice and had been killed in the cyclone which dented human calamity.
expertise to reconstruct its rail, road struck 13 coastal districts on April
THOUGHTFUL:
Bangladesh
and communication networks thrown 29-30 but casualty figures were still Prime Minister Begum Khalida Zia
out of gear by the worst-ever cyclone coming in. The cyclone had rendered while appreciating the Indian gesture
and tidal waves 10 days ago.
millions homeless.
said it was very thoughtful of Mr.
Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar,
During the discussions, the Bangla­ Chandra Shekhar to have taken time
who paid a brief three-hour visit to the desh Prime Minister and other leaders off from his busy electioneering sche­
country told the Bangladesh leader­ expressed the problems faced by them dule to visit the country and express
ship that rice would be despatched in the reconstruction of the commu­ the solidarity and sympathy of the
immediately by trucks and the first nication systems particularly railways Indian people.
consignment would reach in two days and road which had been severely
Soon after landing at Dhaka airport,
time. The exact quantum will be damaged by the cyclone, an official
the Prime Minister, who was received
decided later.
spokesman told newsmen.
by Begum Zia and other high digni­
Mr. Chandra Shekhar, who had
The Indian Prime Minister readily
taries, flew by helicopter to pay his
separate meetings with the President agreed to send a senior railway expert
Mr. Shahbuddin Ahmed and the in a day or two to assess the damage respects at the national martyrs
Prime Minister Begum Khalida Zia, and the assistance required by them. memorial Sat Saver, about 33 km to
the north west of Dhaka
offered to extend whatever further
TRAINING OF PERSONNEL:
Later at the President’s office, Mr.
assistance was needed to get over one The Prime Minister during the talks
of the severest calamities.
also offered training facilities to Ban­ Chandra Shekhar was briefed by the
RELIEF FUND: The Prime Min­ gladesh personnel in weather fore­ principal staff officer. Brig Ghuyiamcn on the details of the cyclone effect.
ister announced that a Bangladesh casting.
relief public contribution fund would
Mr. Chandra Shekhar told Bangla­ The Prime Minister was also apprised
be set up to enable Indians to contri­ desh leaders that it was for them to of the relief measures.
Mr. Chandra Shekhar was also
bute to mitigate the sufferings of the decide what help they required and
friendly neighbour.
India would share its expertise with shown a video • clip of the damage
A Bangladesh government spoke­ them in a spirit of brotherhood to.
Continued on Page 9 Coi. 1

which says’ the new storm appeared to
immediate help.”
Mr. Chandrashekhar was seen off be gaining strength.
RELIEF GOODS LOOTED: Hun­
caused by the cyclone.
by Begum Khaleda Zia. On being
BEYOND IMAGINATION: De­ asked about her talks, Mrs. Zia said gry mobs along the south-eastern coast
scribing the post-cyclone situation as she told the Indian Premier that Ban­ of Bangladesh, including the port city
“something
beyond
human gladesh, having a rice eating popula­ of Chittagong, have started attacking
imagination,” Mr. Chandra Shekhar tion, naturally needed rice from India. and looting food shops and warehou­
said, “we shall do our best to help “We also conveyed our need for ses, according to a report in the
Sunday edition of mass circulation
Bangladesh.”
medicines.” she added.
The Prime Minister said India was,
BANGLA PM TO VISIT DELHI: Bengali daily Sangbad.
ready to provide any number of heli­ The Bangladesh President, Mr. ShaIn Chittagong city, medicine sent as
copters Bangladesh needed for relief habuddin Ahemd and Prime Minister relief were being sold at a high price in
and rescue operations and this had Begum Khalida Zia accepted Prime various places, including around the
been conveyed to the Bangladesh Minister Chandra Shekhar’s invitation city's medical college. Mobs have at­
High Commissioner in New Delhi. So to visit India.
tacked and looted wholesale rice shops
far, six Indian Air Force helicopters
The dates for the visits would be on the island of Sandwip, reports said.
are now assisting relief operations.
decided late, an official spokesman
BANGLA DESK
EXPORTS
FOOD: Ironically, Bangladesh is ex­
Earlier, talking to reporters accom­ said.
FRESH
STORM
BREWING: porting food to Britain while thou­
panying him from India, the Prime
Minister said Bangladesh and other Meanwhile, Meteorologists worried by sands are starving according to a local
Saarc countries can utilise India’s re­ a distant storm brewing in south­ tabloid The News of the World.
It said three plane loads of fruit,
mote sensing facility and other eastern Bay of Bengal have stepped up
scientific knowhow to help minimise monitoring fearing the new turbulence fish and vegetables arrived in London
last week as the British government
the damage caused by natural cala­ could move towards Bangladesh.
A low pressure zone persisting over sent out £6.5 million worth of aid.
mities.
He refuted the criticism that his India's Andaman Islands since Friday The paper tracked shipments from
visit to Dhaka was late and said “the has triggered concern among experts Dhaka to street markets and curry
first priority was not my visit but in Dhaka’s main weather observatory shops in Britain.
Continued from Page 1

tadaa to ouosh troe® to BaogDadesh
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA, May 12.
India has pledged all possible help and assist­
ance to Bangladesh to cope with the post-cyc­
lone situation. The immediate Indian help will in­
clude rice, which the Prime Minister. Mr.
Chandra Shekhar has said, would be despatched
to Dhaka from Calcutta in a couple of days.

’’Whatever we can do will be done, within our
means". Mr. Chandra Shekhar told presspersons
at the Zia International Airport before his depar­
ture on conclusion of his two and half-hour whirl­
wind tour to Dhaka. The Prime Minister, flew
back to Varanasi from where he came here this
morning, after suspending his election campaign.

Mr. Chandra Shekhar, who was accompanied
by the External Affairs Secretary, Mr. I. P.
Khosla. held separate talks with the acting Presi­
dent. Mr. Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed, and the
Prime Minister. Begum Khaleda Zia.
He was also briefed at the President's Secre­
tariat Relief Cell about the extent of damage
caused by the April 29-30 cyclone and tidal
surge, the human casualty of which is now offici­
ally put at 1.38 lakh.

Mr. Chandra Shekhar described the devasta­
tion caused by the cyclone as "tragic and the
worst calamity Bangladesh has experienced." He
said India would do its best despite its own fi­
nancial constraints "because Bangladesh needed
to be helped" at this hour.

He said he had assured Begum Khaleda Zia.
of all possible help and added that rice would be
rushed from the Government stock in West Ben­
gal. The quantum was not known. The offer by
India include rebuilding of damaged rail-links.
roads and bridges.
To a question, he said, India was ready to pro­
vide more helicopters, in addition to the six al­
ready given. He pointed out that he had already
told the Bangladesh High Commissioner in New

The Prime Minister, Mr. Chandra Shekhar, with the Bangladesh Prime Minister, Be­
gum Khaleda Zia, during his three-hour visit to Dhaka on Sunday. — UNI/AFP
Delhi that India could provide "as many helicop­ flew to Savar near here, in a Bangladesh airforce
helicopter to pay homage to the martyrs of the
ters as Bangladesh required."
Mr. Chandra Shekhar, while meeting Begum country’s liberation war.
Khaleda Zia. said his Government would soon
Begum Khaleda Zia later told presspersons
set up a "Bangladesh Relief Fund" in India.
- that she had asked Mr. Chandra Shekhar for rice
At a brief meeting yvith the acting President. and medicines. She and a few senior Cabinet
he expressed his country’s sympathy and soli­ Ministers were present at the airport to see the
darity with the the people and Government of Prime Minister off.

Bangladesh at this hour of great distress". The
Prime Minister also conveyed a message of the
President Mr. R Venkataraman, expressing sym­
pathy and solidarity with the cyclone-battered
people.
Soon after his arrival. Mr. Chandra Shekhar

PTI reports:
Mr. Shahabuddin Ahmed and Begum Khaleda
Zia have accepted Mr. Chandra Shekhar’s invita­
tion to visit India.
The dates for the visits would be decided
later, an official spokesman said.

Diarrhoea takmg ote toil
in Bangladesh
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA, May 12.
In the wake of the trail of devastation left by
cyclone Bangladesh needs ships and helicopters
urgently to link with off-shore islands to save mil­
lions of survivors.
Diarrhoeal diseases have already become an
epidemic in many of the affected areas. said T/re
Daily Star. Most of the survivors are homeless
and without drinking water, food and life-saving
drugs.
Relief agencies and correspondents returning
from the remote worst-affected areas said that
the sea-borne relief operation had become diffi­
cult because of the choppy waves Care Interna­
tional, a leading relief agency, warned that the
"people of the area (Chittagong and Cox's Ba­
zar) will start dying soon, unless they can be
reached. They will die of dehydration, infection
and malnutrition."
The government deployed 17 helicopters to
airdrop about a lakh kg of dry food on which
these people now survive.
The U.S. is planning to provide helicopters to
Bangladesh from its nearest bases. Two giant
planes — C-141 and Galaxy-5 — arrived on Fri­
day carrying some 27,000 pounds of relief goods
and tools, officials said. Most of the areas remain
inaccessible for lack of transport and affected
areas are still under water

Pure water is virtually non-existent in coastal
area and the survivors are forced to drink con-.
laminated water for survival.

The Government has decided to draw 40,000
tonnes of food from its allocation in the SAARC
reserves. In addition Bangladesh will also draw
substantial quantities of food from the quotas of
India and Pakistan. The country's largest daily'
Ittefaq, said that the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr.
Li Peng, had sent a message to the Prime Minis­
ter, Mrs. Khaleda Zia, promising to send food re­
lief.
The Government has rejected the Opposition's
plea for forming an all-party relief

der
the
acting
President.
Mr.
Justice
Shahabuddin Ahmed.
UPI reports.
Looting: Hungry mobs along the south-eastern
coast of Bangladesh, including the port city of
Chittagong, are attacking and looting food shops
and warehouses, according to a report in tne
Sunday edition of mass circulation Bengali daily
Sangbad'.
In Chittagong city, medicine sent as relief are
being sold at a high price in various places, in­
cluding around the city's Medical College. Mobs
attacked and looted wholesale rice shops on the
island of Sandwip, reports said.

i BaogHadtesh ftood ’ '
| sotyatSoirD w©g^®os

DHAKA. May 11

I.

i
>

At least 150,000 people were marooned when three major rivers
burst their banks in four Bangladesh districts overnight, according to
officials and press reports. At least eight people were feared drown­
ed and thousands of mud huts destroyed.
The overflowing Surma and Kushiara rivers had inundated large
areas in the tea-growing northern district of Sylhet. Local officials
said the situation would worsen if it rained today.
In nearby Moulavibazar district, the Kushiara threatened to over­
flow the town protection embankment while in Habiganj district lowlevel areas had been inundated.
- —----The situation in eastern Comilla district also deteriorated following
breaches in the Gumti river embankment, officials said. Widespread
crop losses were reported from the flood-hit districts.
Dhaka's residents scurried out into the streets when a mild tremor
shook the capital today, but there were no reports of damage.
A slight earthquake also shook a hilly region in eastern Bangla­
desh. There was no immediate report of damage.
Newspaper reported that six persons mostly children and teen- |
agers, drowned in the Sylhet region. Another newspaper said two
more persons died when their houses collapsed in the swirling flood
waters.
The Bangladesh Red Crescent said it had counted. 1,25.763 deaths
from the April 30 cyclone that was centered on Chittagong and
spread its fury over the flat coast and offshore islands. — AFP, AP

Haroon Habib reports:
The Kalbaishakhi — the worst-type of localised tornado — con- I
tinued lashing several parts of the country. Almost every day Kaibaishakhi hits the mainland causing extensive loss of life and prop- I
erty. A totai of six tornados hit Comilla. Sirajgonj, Ghorashal. Gazipur
and other places including Dhaka killing at lest 200 people in the last
nine days.

1

Assam situation: The overall situation in Assam continued to be
grave today with Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi districts remain­
ing under flood waters and the rainfed rivers rising at an alarming
rate in Sibsagar.
Official reports said surface communication remained disrupted in
the three Barak valley districts, where lakhs of people had been affected.

■M- U.S

/

Rivers borst
banks
in Bangla
DHAKA, May 11. (AFP)—
Homes of al least 150,000 peo­
ple were flooded when three
major rivers burst their banks in
four Bangladesh districts over­
night, officials and press reports
said here today.
The Bangladesh Observer
said in the tea-growing northern
Sylhet district, water from theSurina and Kushiara rivers has
inundated large areas.
Local officials said the situa­
tion would worsen if it rained
today. “We arc prepared to face
the situation and the admini­
stration had been alerted,” an
official stud over phone.
In nearby Moulavibazar di­
strict, the Kushiara River
threatened the town protection
embankment while in Habiganj
district low-lying areas had been
inundated, reports said.
The flood situation in eastern
Comilla district also deteriorated
following breaches in the Gumti
river embankment, officials said.
Widespread crop losses were
reported from the flood-hit di­
stricts.

PJM. visiting Dhaka
I >Zay 10.
\ 2khar, will
lias symeople of
toured
areas in the * are fearDHAKA, May 10. (Reuter & PT1). districts in the past two weeks. Most ’who
’
’* stricken
‘
“ ~~
Chittagong region for three days, said an official
of the deaths, it said, were' in •
Bangladeshis would have to live with
— Fresh storms pounded Bangladesh
cyclone-affected regions.
□ express
relentlessly killing at least 80 more
“We think the situation will worsen natural calamities.
people of
people, officials said on Friday as in the next two weeks as diseases and
“It has been a part of our life as it I ties beinternational aid was flown into the
hunger take a higher toll of lives”, Mr. comes every year in one form or
poverty-stricken country for millions
Mohammad Islam of Oxfam said.
another,” she told a rally in the sou­ S with the
facing disease and hunger after last
Agricultural experts fear that the thern hill tracts town of Rangamat^on aleda Zia
week’s devastating cyclone.
nee India
Storms packing 100 kph winds salt water that flooded the lands of the Thursday.
But she said she expected interna- i the cycswept across seven towns in northern offshore islands during the cyclone
tional aid to help overcome the tra­
and eastern Bangladesh on Thursday will prevent a year of crops.
gedy.
r Pradesh
night, destroying hundreds of mud
Twenty-six countries have so far leave for
RELIEF: Planes started arriving in
houses and uprooting trees and elec­
Dhaka on Friday with medicine, food pledged emergency aid totalling $ 202 ming and
tricity pylons
and cloth for an estimated four million million, including S 106 million from the same
At least 80 people were killed,
Saudi Arabia.
among them 15 people drowned when victims.
jrstood to
A C-5 galaxy transport and a C-141
The Japanese Government saidirious reatheir boat capsized in the Jumna river
cargo plane landed with relief mate­ Tokyo would give S 7.5 million addi-ight affect
near Serajganj. A further 200 people
rials from the US Government. A i tional aid to' Bangladesh in response to;and relief
were injured in the gales.
C-l 30 plane from Thailand brought in Dhaka’s appeal for massive forcign/y. He had
DIARRHOEA BREAKS OUT:
, assistance.
ovide the
Bangladesh’s health directorate said rice.
Prime Minister Begum Khaleda,
:e. which
1 diarrhoea had killed 951 people in 23
lakhs of
calamity.
jnced an
has also
ottered helicopters for rescuing the stranded
people in the hurricane-affected areas. — Our

80 killed as storms hit Bangla

Floods hit election
work in N-E States

From Utpal Bordoloi
DH News Senice
GUWAHATI, May 10. — The
cyclone that flattened Bangladesh also
lashed the seven states of north-east
India on the far side of that country,
leaving a trial of devastation and lite­
rally dumping cold water on the tem­
po of electioneering which was just
beginning to pick up.

Sonai, Kathakal and Dhaleswari rivers
had all burst their banks at different
places. Plucking and processing of tea
in about 35 gardens had come to a halt
with bushes under water. Oil explora­
tion operations in the valley has also
been badly affected, according to
official reports.
Landslides at different points have
also snapped National Highway 40
Torrential rains that accompanied connecting Guwahati - Shillong - Sil­
the cyclone disrupted road, rail, air char, National Highway 44 connecting
and telecommunication links throug­ Silchar - Aizawal, National Highway
hout the region triggering landslides in 39 linking Nagaland and Manipur to
the hilly regions and floods in the the rest of the country' through Assam,
plains. According to the latest reports. National Highway 52 connecting Ilaavailable here, at least 28 people were nagar and the Tezpur - Tawang
killed throughout the region. In Aru- Highway. While Tawang remains cut
nachal Pradesh, ten army personnel off since May 3, vast stretches of
were killed and 36 others missing after low-lying areas' in the Lohit river
their banacks at Bomdir near Tawang valley have been submerged, including
were swept away by a landslide. Seven several large villages and many polling
persons were reported killed in Tri­ stations in the Lekang Assembly con­
pura while in Assam’s southern Barak stituency.
According to the Meteorological
valley, 12 persons either drowned or
Office here, the monsoon in Assrun
were killed by lightning strikes.
will officially begin on June 3. Thus,
TRAIN SERVICES CANCEL­ the pre-monsoon rain and resultant
LED: At least two states have been havoc has caused no amount of worry
completely cut-off from the rest of the to political parties and candidates for
country. Train services between the ensuing elections, which would be
Guwahati and Silchar, headquarters of held in Assam on June 6 and 8 and in
the Barak valley and gateway to Mis- the other north-eastern States on May
bram, has been indefinitely suspended 23 — less than two weeks away.
with rail tracks submerged by the Electioneering work has been badly
floods which forced nearly two million hit in Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur,
people to seek shelter on highground. Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and
In Karimganj district almost all gov­ Tripura, with the worst sufferer un­
ernment offices, banks, post offices, doubtedly the Barak valley. In the
police stations, the sub-deputy collec­ .Brahmaputra valley too many candi­
tors office and the flood control office dates are in a fix. In many areas the
were under four to six feet of waterw candidates and their supporters have
with people taking shelter on rooftops. not been able to visit their consti­
The situation was equally bad in the tuencies or villages. The political par­
other district headquarters of Haila- ties are for the time being confining
kand. Besides the Barak, the Bukni, their campaign to the urban areas.
According to official sources, the
government machinery' in the north­
eastern stales is now seriously over­
stretched by having to gear up for
relief, rescue and rehabilitation opera­
tions in addition to making poll pre-

Special Correspondent

•

-

Ai

) p cfT* <-/ I'*

S® dtad] as fesh
toinmaid]© Snots
BaonghdesSn
’ DHAKA. May 10.
Bangladesh, struggling to recover from the ef­
fects of a cyclone that devastated 13 districts re­
cently. continued to be battered by fresh spells
of tornado and storm that left at least 80 people
dead and over 2,000 injured, according to re­
ports received here today.
Heavy rains not only hampered relief oper­
ations in the cyclone-hit islands but also render­
ed over one lakh people homeless. Major rivers
in Sylhet and Comilla districts were flowing
above danger-mark, the report said.
Gale at speeds of 110-115 km per hour.
pounded Narsingdi. Sirajganj, Habiganj. Tangail,
Noakhali districts, destroying thousands of mudbuilt houses, uprooting trees and electric poles.
the Bengali daily Banglar Bani reported. At least
30 people were reported missing when a boat
capsized in the Jamuna river in Sirajganj district
Allowing a tornado on Thursday. Seven sub-dis­
tricts of Sirajganj also bore the brunt of the tor­
nado which claimed seven lives, the report said.
Even as the Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda
Zia. whose Government came under fire from the
Opposition for alleged bungling of relief oper­
ations. was on a tour of some cyclone-affected
areas for the last three days, press reports reach­
ing here said thousands of people were still with­
out food and shelter in the worst-hit Chakoria in
Chittagong district and Banskhali in Cox's Bazar
district.

N-E States reel under floods
SILCHAR, May 9. (PTI) — The
army has been requisitioned in the
worst-hit Barak Valley of south Assam
as flash floods triggered by heavy rains
following last week’s cyclonic storm,
battered the entire north-east, taking a
toll of 16 lives and rendering lakhs
homeless, according to official reports.

vast tracts of human habitation and
crop land in the riverine areas.
All major rivers in Tripura crossed
their red marks today following un­
.f
ceasing rains after last week's de­
vastating cyclone that left seven per­
sons dead, according to official reports.
The State Government has set up
In Assam, nine people were killed 100 relief camps to shelter at 1500
and 17 lakh rendered homeless, the families affected by the flash floods in
many areas in the aftermath of the
reports said.
The rain-fed Barak swamped Khel- cyclone, the reports said.
The continuous downpour has also
ma village drowning four persons
while five others were killed in inundated low-lying areas in all the
lightning strikes in Cachar and Ka- three districts of the State, they ad­
ded.
rimgang districts on May 6 and 7.
The overflowing Nambul river in­
Two persons were feared drowned
undated several low-lying areas in­
when their boat capsized at Labourcluding Uripok, Hcirangkhoithong,
tuta village in Cachar.
Lamphcl and Shanushang in Imphal
Silchar town is partially submerged District of Manipur today, according
with Hood waters of the Barak river to official sources.
continuing to rise.
The water levels of some important.
The Brahmaputra and its tributaries rivers, including, Imphal and Iril, were
arc rising all along the 800-Km long steadily rising due to incessant rains
Brahmaputra valley from Sadiya to . during the past week.
Dhubri following incessant rains for
AID SOUGHT: The Mizoram
the 12th day today.
Government has sought interim relief
The rain-fed flood water submerged worth Rs. 30 crore from the Centre to
1
,c

carry out rescue and relief operations
in the State.
Al least five persons have been
killed, over 10,000 houses damaged
and crops and property .worth Rs. 30
crore destroyed in the cyclonic storm,
a Mizoram Government release said in
New Delhi.
Communication links within the
State and outside have also been sev­
erely affected, the release added.
■While national highway No. 54 has
been inundated, the Vayudoot service,
the only air link for the Stale, has been
suspended due to inclement weather.

■fentinued:

p,■Jd’.-<<>)/

Tornado hits J
Bangla again:
8 killed

Caution m aod] to Bangladesh puts
, India in bad] light

DHAKA, May 9. (PTI & UNI) —
£
.. . ti_
. 1
.At least eight people were killed and
Planes to ferry relief: The Government has set over a |00 injured when
d

From K. K. Katyal
stricts overnight Wednesday, officials
have been placed at the disposal of the authorit­
ies in Dhaka. Care appears to have been taken said here today.
For the last two days, the Prime Minister, Mr.
The fresh natural calamity struck
to keep India’s role in relief operations in a low
Chandra Shekhar, has been trying to contact his
key to ensure that an essentially humanitarian the country as Bangladesh, with the
counterpart in Bangladesh, Begum Khalida Zia,
problem and an unprecedented tragedy does not support of increasing assistance from
on telephone but has not been able to do so.
get politicised, as had happened once in the abroad, was busy providing food and
partly because she was out of Dhaka, touring the
shelter to 15 million people affected
cyclone-hit areas and partly because of disturb­ past.
However, this caution has been carried to an by the unprecedented cyclone that
ed communication channels. The call was intend­
ed to assure her of India’s help, in the form and extreme, with the result that India is seen as a ‘.truck 13 of its coastal districts on
manner suggested by the Bangladesh Govern­ passive spectator of the tragedy while countries April 29.
A gale, with a wind speed of
from far and near are rushing aid on a massive
ment for urgent, effective relief measures.
hour swept
scale. Those who have had the opportunity of 100-115 km per
.
. Sirajgunj
...v
India has already announced an aid of the or­
viewing foreign television coverage of the District leaving more than 100 injurder of Rs. 10 crores. Soon after the tragedy
Bangladesh tragedy and related events in the ed, including 30 students trapped
struck Bangladesh on April 29 night, New Delhi
last few days could not have formed any other under the debris of a school building
allocated Rs. 1JLcrore for relief-measures. The
impression. India could not have been seen in a that came crashing down.
amount was too meagre, with the result that New
worse light.
FLAYED: The Opposition today
Delhi got a flak for being niggardly. Actually, the
The explanation for this lapse lies in the fact flayed Bangladesh’s new government
Government was faced with a problem — in the
absence of a regular budget it could not with- that New Delhi's style in dealing with other coun- for failing to help the millions of
• draw a huge sum from the Consolidated Fund of tries has been cramped because of the political victims of last month’s cyclone in a
India, and, for a while, no way out appeared in crisis and the inherent constraints of the interim stormy session when parliament reo. sight. The initial amount of Rs. 1.5 crore was government. It is doubly unfortunate that this pened after a four-day break
MPs
belonging
several Opposigiven out of the External Affairs Ministry's limited should
..
Lhave
. L happened in regard to Bangladesh.
.
.............
- av,vltuto ^0^budget Subsequently, however, Rs. J 0_ crore—with which a new beginning was made early last tion partics forced Speaker Abdur
was found from the Prime Minister's National Re- V^r.
the Dhaka visit of the then External Rahman Biswas to drop“the" dav’s
lief Fund._____________________________
Affairs Minister. Mr, I. K. Gujral._______________ normal
33^at

NEW DELHI. May 9.

.

I

House should discuss the disaster
which has left at least 1,26,000 people
dead.

^1' ' * Lb

tl ©read© kills 5©
m Bangladesh
DHAKA. May 8.
At least 50 persons were killed and more than
1.000 injured in a severe tornado that swept over
Gazipur district. 25 km from here yesterday, the
Bengali daily Ittefaq said.
Earlier reports, however, feared that the casu­
alty might be near 200 considering the magni­
tude of the devastation. Almost all the houses of
five villages, electric pylons and trees were level­
led. Several passenger buses were also upturned
by the tornado which lasted for 20 minutes.

I

--—HT- y. j <1*-^
From Haroon Habib

Tornado slams
Dhaka suburb:
20® feared dead

DHAKA, May 7.
Within seven days of the cyclone which bat­
tered the coastline of Bangladesh killing thou­
sands of people a fresh tornado with a severe
windspeed killed at least 30 people in Gazipur
district today. Several hundred people were in­
jured, according to preliminary reports. (Accord­
ing to AFP. 200 people were feared killed and
over 1.000 injured.)
Earlier on Monday, another cyclone with less
intensity struck the district of Comilla killing 11
people. The Met office had forecaste occasional
rain accompanied by gusty wind. Today’s tor­
nado near the Tongi industrial belt reportedly
damaged dozens of houses and destroyed small­
er industrial units

DHAKA, May 7. (AFP) — Some
200 people were feared killed and
more than a 1,000 injured when a
severe tornado slammed into an indu­
strial suburb near the capital today,
officials said.
A fire brigade official said rescuers
had so far recovered five bodies from
the suburb of Tongi, 20 kilometres
north of Dhaka, adding that So far 100
people had been hospitalised.
In Dhaka’s main casualty hospital,
three more bodies were brought in
along with many of the injured, a
hospital doctor said, refusing to give

Fresh tornado state
Bangladesh: 3© billed

more details.

Piaster' relief plaia for cyclome-Wt
DHAKA, May 7. (PIT & AFP) —
Prime Minister Khaleda Zia today
announced that a master plan for relief
and rehabilitation of cyclone-ravaged
coastal districts would be finalised in a
couple of days, and denied Opposition
charge that relief being supplied was
inadequate.
Official sources have pm the death
toll in the cyclone that hit 13 districts
in southern Bangladesh'at 125,720 and
of those suffering due to the after­
effects of the cyclone at 15 million.
The sources said army, navy and the
civil administration were still grappl­
ing with rough weather to provide
food and shelter to thousands of hun­
gry and disease-stricken survivors.
INQUIRY: Meanwhile, the Ban­
gladesh President and Supreme
Commander of the Armed Forces,
Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed, has or­
dered a court of inquiry to probe into
the damage caused by the cyclone to
several aircraft of the air force and
havy ships at Chittagong port.
Mrs. Zia denied press reports that
relief measures were not adequate in
certain affected areas, and said army
and civil administration were doing
their best to reach remote and inac­
cessible areas where thousands of
people were reportedly languishing for
help for nearly a week.
She described as untrue reports that
there was no coordination among
different relief agencies at the national
level. “Had that been not there, many
people who survived the cyclone
would have been dead by now,” she
said.
She, however, admitted that rough
sea had prevented some ships carrying
relief materials from reaching the af­
fected islands, but after that, “we
could
reach
those
places
by

helicopters.”
seriously dislocated.
DENIAL: Begum Zia told newsm­
Airports will, however, continue to
en that there was no relief material fuel international transports bringing
sent from abroad now lying stranded relief materials for the victims of the
at Dhaka airport. “We arc sending it disaster, planes carrying VIPs and
as soon as possible,” she added.
aircraft belonging to the State-owned
She also denied that there was a Bangladesh Biman Airline, they said.
communication gap between authori­
EPIDEMICS FEARED: Epide­
ties in Dhaka and relief machinery at mics threatened to break out and high
the affected areas, and said the Min­ winds swept southern part of Bangla­
isters and Government secretaries had desh devastated by a killer cyclone.
been given the charge of supervising
OPPOSITION CHARGE: Mean­
relief and rescue operations.
while, leaders of the Left wing fiveBegum Zia said the supply of party alliance accused the Govern­
electricity and water had been restored ment of “hiding the truth about the
in Chittagong town and the city air­ loss of life and property in cyclone”,
port and sea port made operational.
reports the State-owned BSS.
Criticising the 9-year rule of
PM RELEASES 10 CR: Prime
Gen.H.M. Ershad, she said “those 9 Minister Chandra Shekhar today
years, coupled with unbridled corrup­ made available Rs. 10 crore from his
tion. led to the collapse of the national relief fund for the cyclone-fiit people
economy.”
in Bangladesh.
RELIEF ASSURED: The interna­
The amount is to be utilised for
tional community pledged relief worth immediate relief and for reconstruc­
$ 150 million so far, with Begum Zia tion and rehabilitation of the affected
having predicted the total loss at people, an official release said here.
$ 2.38 billion.
Two IAF aircraft carrying JO ton­
More foreign aid has been promised nes of relief assistance — consistingof
by groups, including the European food, clothing and sanitation items —
Community, the Organisation of the reached Dhaka today, it said, adding
Islamic Conference and the South that the Indian High Commission in
Asian Association of Regional Co­ Dhaka was in constant touch with the
Bangladesh authorities to ascertain
operation.
NO REFUELLING: Meanwhile, their requirements.
The Indian Red. Cross was also
the Bangla Government has with­
drawn refuelling facilities for foreign Basing with the Bangladesh Red Cre­
aircraft, saying Bangladesh’s petro­ scent to determine priorities, it added.
TERESA’S OFFER: Mother Te­
leum supplies had been hit by the
cyclone which also crippled its only resa has offered to take care of the
children and the old people who had
refinery, officials said.
The Petroleum Ministry, which been rendered homeless by the cy­
slapped the ban on Monday and in­ clone in Bangladesh till they find a
troduced petrol rationing for vehicles, home again.
The offer was made during the
said international passenger jets flying
via Dhaka will not be exempted from Nobel Laureate’s meeting with Mr.
the restrictions as its supplies were Shahabuddin here yesterday.

Begum Zia facing bigger storm
DHAKA, May 6.
In a country long ruled by the military,
an inexperienced civilian Government must
now deal with the large-scale devastation
wrought by a cyclone that has killed more
than 125,000 people.
As casualties steadily mounted, the
Bangladesh Government was caught in an
awkward transition of power, with the lines
of authority still unclear.
“If this popularly elected civilian
Government fails, it will have a
catastrophic socio-political impact. There
will be political instability and democracy
win'be at great risk,” said Mr. Emajuddin
Ahmed, a former Vice-Chancellor of
Dhaka University and a political columnist.
Army officers handling the logistics of
ferrying aid to millions of people made
homeless say they are frustrated by
Government inefficiency.
“if you ask me about the relief efforts so
far, I can simply tell you that we are not
satisfied," said one Army commander
involved in the relief effort. He spoke on
condition of anonymity. He declined to
discuss specifics, but said “There is lack of
coordination between different agencies."
Confusion: Confusion was obvious on

Saturday when Mother Teresa arrived in
Dhaka with 725 kg of powdered milk and
biscuits on a commercial flight from India.
An Air Force officer bickered for several
hours with a bureaucrat from the Foreign
Ministry’s relief coordination cell about
who was to take charge of the supplies
and whether customs were due.
"The crisis seems to be in the
management of relief and rescue work.
The Government has not been successful,”
Mr. Ahmed said. Begum Khaleda Zia's
Government denies allegations of
inefficiency.
"We are doing everything possible for
relief. The Prime Minister is touring the
affected areas almost every day,” said Mr.
Rafiqul Islam, a junior Minister and close
aide to Begum Zia. "One must understand
that this is a mountainous problem that an
affluent country would find difficult to cope
with," he said.
Disagreements: Sources close to Begum
Zia’s party admit that disagreements
between the acting President, Mr.
Shahabuddin Ahmed, and the Prime
Minister are hampering relief efforts.
One source said Mr. Shahabuddin

India rushing aid
to Bangladesh
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA, May 6.
Two Indian Air Force aircraft will be landing
here tomorrow carrying tonnes of relief materials
! for the victims of the killer cyclone and tidal
surge. More flights of IAF aircraft are expected .
. within the next few days.
j
•,
India became the first country to sepd .three
; (helicopters urgently needed by Bangladesh for
! relief and rescue opration in the inaccessible
1 areas. The IAF helicopters are giving daily sor■: ties to the affected areas. The relief materials will
i include dried food, clothing, water purification
: tablets, and bleaching powder.
,i
The. French-Government announced that it will
- take an initiative to raise an international fund to j
• help Bangladesh. The vIsitingJFn^KMinisterfor:
1 HumanjtarianActions, Mr. Bernard Kouchner, af-;
’ ter touring the worst-hit areas, said that his coun- |
try would propose a special United Nations con-'
1 ference of donors in New York to raise funds for
reconstruction of the cyclone ravaged Bangla­
desh.

Ahmed refused to release $60 millions
from a fund he inherited from the former
President, Mr. H. M. Ershad, because Mr.
Ershad’s rule is under investigation for
alleged financial irregularities.
"The Prime Minister phoned the acting
President immediately after the cyclone to
get him to release money from the
President’s relief fund. But the President
did not agree," said the source. The next
day Begum Zia opened a relief fund at her
Prime Minister’s secretariat.
An independent Bengali-language
newspaper, Kagaz, reported yesterday
that Mr. Shahabuddin is displeased with
Begum Zia’s failure to consult him on relief
operations.
Begum Zia is also getting little help from
the Opposition parties. She proposed a
meeting with her longtime rival, Sheikh
Hasina, leader of the Awami League, and
other Opposition leaders to discuss the
relief work. No one accepted the
invitation, apparently refusing to confer
any prestige on the Prime Minister. But
political parties are still conducting
separate relief operations that are not
linked witft Government efforts. — AP
India rushing aid: P 9

7f

*
Bangladesh's
continuing nightmare
H

THE FURY OF the elements does not
seem to have spent itself out in Bangladesh
•where the most murderous'cyclone the world
has seen in recent times is already feared to
have killed nearly half a million people. There
have been fresh threats that this woe-ridden
country may again be hit by high speed gale
--------------------------------- jr-p— -7 c
;
and rain- The relief which stricken Bangladesh
-J '
will need from th® international community will
have to be on a scale far higher than it had
been at any time earlier. It will be very unfortu­
DHAKA, May 6. (PTI) — Incle- km per hour.
nate if the
competing . demands for
relief on a
ment weather continued to hinder
Authorities claimed
...
..
relief operations for the third day tensified relief operatic scale which could be JUSt as massive from the
today in the off-shore islands of Ban- ffectcd areas with air-< Kurdish refugees worsens the aid weariness
gladesh which were worst-hit by last and other goods, but among the richer countries and makes their efweek’s killer cyclone and tidal surge such operations were forts to provjde relief to Bangladesh half-heart-

A—
/Miouier
storm s'w

that claimed more than 1.75 lakh lives,
according to official information re­
leased.
Rough sea, submerged vessels and
other objects are reportedly affecting
the navigation, affecting transport of
relief material.
A severe storm again swept over the
already cyclone-battered areas of the
southern coast yesterday, while danger
signal number three was hoisted in
Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar.

niany places as they fcl
Corpses and carcas
floating on the sea or lyir
The magnitude of the demands which the
many affected islands. Bangladesh Government as well as the internaThe Bangladesh Go'tjona| community will face while trying to lift the

purificatoin tablets andvlctims of the cyclone and the tidal waves from
£unere for carrying drinl their misery will be far more staggering and coFinance Minister Salossal than they had been at any time earlier.
said Bangladesh needed The ajd amounts which have been so far made

.’

F°?d available — £7 millions committed by the Euro-

losscs caused by last w
_
,
.
. , ,
pean Community to buy food, blankets, tents
Outbreak of diarrhoeal diseases was disasler
reported from the cyclone-affected
Mr. Rahman, who ret and other emergency supplies, £1.25 millions
areas of Chittagong, Cox’s.. Bazar, fortnight's tour of the UTrom Britain, $1 million from the UNICEF, etc.,
Noakhali, Bhola, Feni, Barisal and yesterday, told newsme
— are far too inadequate to be of much conse­
Pirojpur, claiming 200 lives till temational community ’
yesterday, the Bengali daily Sangbad “promptly and positiv quence because of the nightmarish devastation
said.
Bangladesh recover the Bangladesh has suffered. The relief operations
NOR’WESTER: Weather experts by cyclone.
will have to take care of not only feeding the
forecast a nor’wester to hit some di­
Meanwhile, on-rush people who are starving and have been render­
stricts in Khulna and Dhaka division caused floods in. eigt
today with a wind speed of upto 60 north-eastern district o ed homeless but also save them from the

scourge of epidemics resulting from the un­
precedented fouling up of the environment. The
mobilisation of helicopters and aircraft for
reaching supplies of food and medicines to the
victims will be among the gigantic tasks which
the international community will have to take up
since the fleet of planes and helicopters which
Bangladesh has is much too small to meet the
far too despairing demands made on it. Though
India is itself hard-pressed for resources and is
right now very much preoccupied with the mid­
term elections less than three weeks away, it
will have to extend a big helping hand to its
unfortunate neighbour.

What has been as bewildering as it has
been heart-breaking about the ordeal which
Bangladesh has gone through on this and on
earlier occasions has been the total helpless­
ness against the havoc-laden tidal waves. It is
said that the shallow waters off the Bangladesh
coast make the country far more vulnerable
than it would have been otherwise because
such geography makes it prone to recurring ti­
dal waves. The near-impossibility of ensuring
protection to the people exposed, to tidal
waves emerges in all its starkness in view of
the fact that the Bangladesh coast is littered
with numerous populated small islands.
It is a pity that while tidal waves — also
known as tsunanm — have been the subject of
study and research for more than a century, the
sense of helplesspess it has spread continues.
The toll of lives taken by tidal waves in Bangla­
desh could be the highest recorded in history
•since the number of people killed in the tsunami
described as having been the most destructive
was the one which hit_Awa in Japan in 1703
killing 100,000 people. There have also been
very alarming reports that Bangladesh will con­
tinue to be hit by tidal waves in the future. It is
the duty of the international community, particu­
larly of the weather scientists to consider
whether it is really beyond the capabilities they
have to minimise if not wholly eliminate the hor­
rors of the recurring tragedy of tidal waves.

Gale alert: on Bangladesh^
DHAKA, May 5.
Meteorologists issued warnings of fresh rain
and a high-speed gale on Sunday as reports
came in of more deaths in another tidal wave in
the countryis-south already devastated this week
by a killer cyclone.
The weather office here said 'Norwester' rains
with accompanying gales with wind speeds of up
to 60 km an hour would lash northern and south­
ern Bangladesh later on Sunday. "Wind speeds
could gain momentum in many places." a
weather official said, adding the Norwester
would hit the districts of Dhaka, Bogra,
Rajashahi, Pabna, Tangail, Faridpur, Sylhet and
Mymensingh.
"A cautionary signal has been sounded," the
weather office said, adding the fresh squalls
could reach any intensity.
Similar warnings have been sounded in the*
southeastern district of Nohakhali, one of the 16'
of Bangladesh s 64provinces virtually destroyed
by last Monday's cyclone, which has also left at
least 125,000 people dead nationwide.
State-owned television issued fresh appeals to
boats and ships to operate carefully because of
the approaching b^d weather and debris from
vessels sunk by the week's natural disaster.
Fresh tidal wave: Newspapers reported a fresh
tidal wave in the cyclone-devastated areas of
Banshkhali, Anwara, Kutupdia, Maheshkhali and
Cfiakoria and sa’id’some 200 people have died
overnight in the fresh surge.

A similar tidal wave has slammed into the is­
lands of Sandwip, St Martin's, Nijhumdwip and
Sohadiaafterpounding rain on Friday and Satur­
day raised the level of rivers that empty into the
Bay of Bengal, the dailies added.
These four islands located off the country's
southeastern coasts have been virtually washed
away by a giant tidal wave that accompanied
last Monday's cyclone amid reports that tens of
thousands of people were carried away into the
Bay. There was no independent confirmation of
the reports, and officials said they were check­
ing.
Bad weather hits relief work: Hampered by
bad weather and inadequate transport, relief sup­
plies are failing to reach most survivors of the

Officials dealing with relief said the Govern­
ment had not given foreign relief organisations a
list of specific needs, but had only issued a gen­
eral appeal for help.
Criticism of the handling of the rescue oper­
ation was led by political opponents of the Prime
Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia's six-week-old
Government. "There is no coordination in relief
work. The Government also failed to brief the
foreign missions about the exact picture of dev­
astation and the needs of the affected people,"
said Mr. Tofael Ahmed. Legislator of the opposi­
tion Awami League.
The Government denied that a lack of coordi­
nation between ministries and agencies has stal­
led the relief and rescue mission. "We have em­
ployed everything we have for coping with the
situation."
Cholera epidemic feared: Relief officials and
Red Crescent volunteers said decomposing bod­
ies were contaminating the water and the envi­
ronment threatening the survivors with a cholera
epidemic. "Many survivors will die if water and
food do not reach them immediately," said a Red
Crescent official.

Mother Teresa, Sharif survey damage: The Pa­

Bangladeshi men and women, clutching
their children and the few possessions
they could salvage, make their way to
dry land on Wednesday near the south­
ern island town of Kutubdia, one of the
places worst hit in last week’s cyclone
and tidal surge. — PTI
storm-shattered Bangladesh coast, officials and
news reports said on Sunday.
The relief Ministry control room said the offi­
cial count of dead stood this morning at 125,720.
An official news agency yesterday put the figure
at over 125,000 and newspapers predicted the
final toll will equal the world's worst storm disas­
ter with half a million casualties.
Bangladesh's tiny air force of 12 helicopters
and a few fixed-wing aircraft have been handi­
capped by gusty winds and rain over the last
few days, which continued today.

kistan Prime Minister, Mr. Nawaz Sharif. Nobel
Laureate Mother Teresa and a French Minister
today surveyed the extent of the catastrophe
caused by. the cyclone. Begum Khaleda Zia ac­
companied the foreign dignitaries in an Air Force
helicopter which flew over the worst hit islands
in Chittagong and Cox's Bazar in the southern
coast.

Survivors loot Govt, food: Hungry survivors
looted trucks carrying Government food in
Chittagong, the Sangbad daily reported.
A group of people stopped the trucks in
Fauzdajhat area on Saturday and fled after loot­
ing them, the newspaper said, adding that food
and water were yet to reach the storm-battered
people of the district, five day after the cyclone
struck.
No independent confirmation was available
but the newspaper said local officials confirmed
the incident first reported after the calamity.__
AFP AP

Survivors of the devastating cyclone scramble for tins of dry food as relief supplies are air-dropped in
Moeshkali in Bangladesh on Saturday. — UNI/AFP

Bad weather, poor transport
hit relief work in Bangladesh
DHAKA, May 5. (AP, Reuter &
PT1) — Hampered by bad weather
and inadequate transport, relief sup­
plies are failing to reach most survi­
vors of the storm-shattered Bangladesh
coast, officials and news reports said
today.
The official count of dead stood this
morning at around 1,25,000 while
newspapers predicted the final loll will
equal the world’s worst storm disaster
with half a md Hop ..casualties,
’Bangladesh’s tiny air force of 12
helicopters and a few fixed-wing air­
craft have been handicapped by gusty
winds and rain over the last few days,
which continued today.
Speedboats and fishing trawlers
which could have been used to ferry
supplies to marooned islands- cither
sank in Tuesday's storm or were out of

the newspaper said, adding that food
Outbreak of diarrhoeal diseases was
and water were yet to reach the reported from a few places in the
storm-battered people of the district, cyclone-hit islands due to consumption
of contaminated water.
five-day after the cyclone struck.
Newspaper reports and Opposition
Both the civil and military medical
politicians here have alleged that relief teams, however, have been able to
was inadequate and that in some reach some inaccessible areas of
places nothing had got through.
Chittagong and Cox’s Bazaar, officials
The Government had refuted the said.
allegations but admitted thatbroken
Telecommunications between Chit­
communications, bad weather and lack tagong and Dhaka and between Cox’s
of helicopters and boats were slowing Bazaar and Dhaka still could hot be
restored even six days after the cy­
the distribution of relief goods.
The Government has also denied clone that severely damaged the Betthat .a lack of coordination between bunia sattellite ground station and
ministries and agencies has stalled the uprooted a number of telephones
poles.
relief and rescue mission.
Meanwhile, France pledged to do­
However, a Red Crescent official
said “Many survivors will die if water nate $ 86,000 for the cyclone victims.
and food do not reach them imme­
diately”.
... |

4

THE HINDU, Sunday, May 5, 1991.

djA

$•£’

Spontaneous response
to Dhaka appeal for help
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 4.
International response to the Bangladesh
Prime Minister's appeal for emergency help is
"very good and spontaneous”. While many
countries and agencies have supplied emerg­
ency relief, many others are making anxious
queries on the extent of damage and how best
they could stand by the distressed humanity.
Responding to Begum Khaleda Zia’s appeal,
the United Nations Relief Organisation (UNDRO)
is sending a team to assess the magnitude of de­
struction and necessary relief requirement. The
King of Bhutan is sending a senior Cabinet Min­
ister. besides providing two million Bhutanese
Nutrum. India, which is sending three helicopters
has sent emergency relief worth 7 lakhs dollars.
Jamiat Ul Ulama Hind has also donated Rs.
15,000.
The Bangladesh Parliament, which held its first
session after the deluge on Friday adopted a re­
solution condoling the deaths of hundreds of
thousands of people. Special prayers were offer­
ed in all the mosques as well as the temples and
pagodas.

UNDP aid
BSS pool reports:
The United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) will provide $50,000 immediately for

emergency relief requirements. The UNDP ad­
ministration will also send a team on an urgent
basis to assess the extent of damage and deter­
mine the additional assistance. This was disclos­
ed to the Finance and Planning Minister, Mr.
Saifur Rahman, when he met with the UNDP ad­
ministrator, Mr. William H. Draper, in New York
an official handout said here tonight.
The UNICEF has donated one million dollars
as emergency assistance for the cyclone-affect­
ed people of Bangladesh, a UNICEF press re­
lease said here. The UNICEF Executive Director,
Mr. James P. Grant, who released the amount for
the distressed Bangladeshis, has also, appealed
for $5 millions more for UNICEF relief operations
in Bangladesh, the press release said. To meet
the immediate health and safe drinking water
needs for the children in the affected areas, the
UNICEF has procured supplies worth $250,000
from its Copenhagen division.
The European Economic Community is prepar­
ing to forward aid to Bangladesh to the value of
10 million ecus
The European Community has committed
seven million pounds to buy food, tents, blankets
and other emergency supplies. Britain's contribu­
tion in this would be £1.25 million.
Telex and telegram links between Dhaka and
the outside world were fully restored on Friday
via the satellite earth station of Talihabad, a T
and T Board source said here.

‘Aid fatigue’ among
rich nations?

} .

BONN, May 4.
International relief efforts for survivors of the
cyclone disaster in Bangladesh are slowly get- .
ting under way, but there are clear signs or an ;
"aid fatigue" among rich nations following the i
massive operation undertaken by them to help I
the Kurdish refugees.
So far, the only significant offer of help for the
cyclone victims have come from the European
Commission in Brussels which yesterday pledg­
ed 20.5 million marks for immediate relief of the
survivors. But even this is seen by some com­
mentators as "very little" considering the dimen­
sion of the disaster and also in comparison with
the 300 million mark assistance the Commission
had offered for the Kurdish refugees.
In Bonn, the German Government yesterday
gave 250,000 marks to the German Red Cross
for the immediate assistance to the cyclone vic­
tims. In contrast, the German Government had
pledged 415 million marks for Kurds

Cycfosie aid ship sinks
I ' * k A. May 4.
A private ship chartered by the non-govern­
mental U.S. relief agency CARE has sunk in the
Bay of Bengal while sailing with food and medi­
cine to a cyclone-hit island in the southeast, a
CARE spokesman said here on Saturday.
At least one CARE (Cooperative for American
Relief Everywhere) executive was reported miss­
ing after the trawler carrying 10 relief officials
sank off Bangladesh's NoakhAli district late on
Friday, the spokesman said. "The chartered traw­
ler was going to Hatia when it went down be­
cause or bad weather, "the spokesman said, (

Haunted by hunger, disease
ANWARA (Bangladesh), May 4.
Laila collapsed and died on Friday a few hours
after her father buried her younger sister next to
his house, shredded by a giant cyclone that hit
Bangladesh four days ago.
Laila, 12, and her 10-year-old sister were
among a dozen children who, driven by thirst
and hunger, had drank from foul drains after the
cyclone smashed water mains in this country on
Monday. The result was death from chronic diar­
rhoea. "Who will explain to children that one
should boil water ... .and in any case what do
we use to light a fire? asked a neighbour, 10 min­
utes after the burial of the two children in the
relentless rain which has been pounding Anwara
since Thursday.
Hunger and fears of an epidemic haunt
Anwara's 250,000 survivors of Monday's cyclone
and accompanying tidal surge, which wreacked
havoc and left92,000people dead, according to
latest official counts. Tens of thousands of others
are feared missing.
"Allah’s blessing was on us and not more than
a couple of hundred died in this place, but now
God and Government have both turned against
us and we will now die of hunger and disease,"
said Anwara's former political representative, Mr.
Sidique Ahmad.
"There are no relief supplies and we do not
even have a single tubewell.... we are drinking
floodwater.... There is disease everywhere, in
every house," wept a woman, who said half her
family had died in the cyclone and the surviving
members were starving and sick.
Located some 40Am_fromJhe_sputeastern
port city of Chittagong, this once-prosperous.
farming district's 125 villages have been virtually
flattened by the storm and seawater has washed
away their precious food and water supplies.

The fetid smell of rotting food rose from ton­
nes of wet rice laid out by the desperate resi­
dents across a road, but fresh rains on Thursday
and Friday had reduced the carefully stacked
piles into running puddles.

Kutubdia island held onto a largp chunk of
unrefined"sugar thrown out of the helicopter as
about 50 other men began to pull at him to get
their share. The man dropped the sugar bag on
the ground and then covered it with his body.

Sonadeep, "island of gold" in the Bengali lan­
guage. is home to some 5,000 people. It was one
of the areas worst hit. Only 2,000 people remain­
ed on Scnadeep yesterday. The rest were dead
or missing.
As water started to recede yesterday from re­
mote islands in the Bay of Bengal, survivors be­
gan searching for the missing. "Most of the miss­
ing are presumed dead, since in Bangladesh's
close-knit society it is easier to account for the
missing. We know each other very well," said
Mohammad Zahir, a Sonadeep fisherman. x
Standing amid bloated, decomposing bodies,
a half-naked middle-aged man knelt to see the
faces of dead men, women and children. He nod­
ded his head in sorrow. Wearing only a sarong,
his nose covered to fight the stench, the man
murmured something and walked to the next
heap of bodies. He did not find the face or faces
he was searching for.

Teenagers waded through waist-deep water to
salvage tins of biscuits that had fallen in the wa­
ter. Women waved at the helicopter and prayed
with folded hands for relief.
On island after island, residents hoisted make­
shift red flags to draw the attention of helicop­
ters.
As Samsher landed his helicopter on a small
island with a patch of dry land, hundreds of hun­
gry men stormed it. They begged for food and
water. Some tried to climb into the helicopter. Ig­
noring the risk, they waited below the craft as
rice bags weighing 100 kg were dropped.
Dozens of plastic cans, each containing 20litres of water, were dropped, some smashing as
they hit the ground. Dozens of the coastal resi­
dents, many of them fishermen, were seen trying
to net fish with baskets.
Women were drying whatever rice they could ’
salvage from storage. "Clothes are a big prob- I
lem at the moment." said Mr. Karim Dad. Direc- I
tor of relief operation at Chittagong. "What we 1
have at the moment is insufficient relief. This is '
nothing. We need more." Mr. Dad said.
As an AN-32 transport plane, which took >
journalists from Phakalo. Chittagong. prepared
to take off. about a dozen children among the
onlookers came forward.
"We have not eaten for past three days, ex­
cept for a few biscuits and puffed rice." said Mo­
hammad Lukman, 12. Me and my brother want
something to eat. he said pointing at his sixyear-old brother, Imran. — AFP" — AP

Bodies were strewn throughout the (180-km)
coastal_be.lt. At some places there wereTeaps of
dead, numbering in the dozens.
At Maheshkhali island, a lone woman stood
amidst rubble — her brick and cement home be­
fore the cyclone hit. From the helicopter, no oth­
er survivors could be seen in her village.
In another village men were seen covering
bodies with tree branches, but no one attempted
burials. There was not enough dry land and
equipment to dig.
Fighting for food: Men fought each other for
food dropped from the helicopter. A man in

$ f S■

i

©hBagoog tarns oot© a gh©st ©otg
From Haroon Habib
CHITTAGONG, May 4.
Four days after the greatest human tragedy — the
April 29-30 cyclone and tidal surge — Chittagong re­
sembles a ghost city and the survivors are still fear
'stricken. This Correspondent visited some parts of
Greater Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar, where killer na­
ture silenced the lives of well over a lakh people.
The casualty figure will remain a matter of conjecture
because, first, there was no access to the worst-hit is­
lands for a few days and, secondly, thousands of famil­
ies in those remote areas seem to have been washed
away by the storm and tidal surge leaving virtually no
survivors. The official toll figure rose up to 1.25 lakhs
while unofficially it is about five lakhs.
The official figure includes the latest confirmation of
40.000 deaths in Cox's Bazar district alone, said Mr.
Abdullah-al-Noman, State Minister for Forest, Fisheries
IAF helicopters begin work: Three Indian Air Force
helicopters have landed here today to meet the urgent
need of at least 20 aircraft for emergency relief work.
Mother Teresa arrives: The internationally reputed
"champion of the distressed." Mother Teresa, arrived in
Dhaka today with her relief materials from Calcutta.
showing her great concern for the survivors, who pass
their days amidst acute uncertainty.
The Pakistan Prime Minister. Mr. Nawaz Sharif, will
be reaching here tomorrow accompanied by an eight­
member high-power team.
While the telephone system is yet to be restored,
electricity has been partially restored in the Chittagong
port city. The city's green canopy, that formed its sky­
line has disappeared. The million trees that made the
city so special are all gone.
The people of Chittagong, the birth place of many
great warriors from where the armed struggle against
Pakistani barbarity first broke out in 1971, now seem
visibly afraid — as if they have lost all their moral
strength to fight nature.
The airport, where a good number of Air Force
planes were damaged, started operating in a limited
scale from yesterday.
In Banshkhali, hundreds of carcasses were still found
Stench from the decomposed bodies filled the air and
diarrhoea has reportedly claimed lives. There are few
houses left in this densely populated coastal area. All
the nine unions are still submerged, though in many pla­
ces the water has started receding.

\

The sea resort of Cox’s Bazar and the nearby is­
lands, have been shattered and innumerable houses
razed to the ground, rendering lakhs homeless. In Sadar
upazila of Cox's Bazar, Chokoria. Kutubdia and Teknaf
the deaths run into thousands. In Chakoria and
Maheshkhali as the helicopter flew low one could see
survivors waiting for food, water and medicine to be air
dropped. The vast expanses of the fields are littered
with human and animal carcasses, fallen trees and tan­
gled masses of houses. Diarrhoea and other diseases
have been reported from all these places.
Gusty wind and rainfall hampered relief work. Rescue
workers and relief teams, backed by Navy ships and
Air Force helicopters, continued their efforts braving
the inclement weather.

Saga of courage
AFP reports:

"I tied my children to myself when the wall of water
broke over my head. After that it was all very dark."
said Razia Khatun as she huddled for shelter with her
three sons. Salman. Rahim and Suleman, in Chitta­
gong's dockside area.
For Ms. Khatun. 24. who married a middle-income
city worker six years ago, it was a lonely battle as dis­
aster struck 30 minutes past midnight and neighbours
were too busy saving their own lives.
For eight hours she sat clinging to a post on her
rooftop in Patenga, 3 km from Chittagong, and when
her home collapsed into the water she swam with her
three young children to another house and then to an­
other.
My husband was not in on Monday and I was about
to sleep with my children when the ground shook and
the skies split with a roar so loud that I thought I had
gone mad," she said.
Grabbed a rope: Ms. Khatun scrambled out of bed
and the first thing she grabbed was a long rope when
she saw a wall of water three metres high racing to­
wards the airport about one kilometre from her brick.
and mortar house.
I coiled the rope around the three boys and wrapped
it across my shoulders and could just climb on the roof
when the roaring wall of water broke over my head.
Then, it was all very dark, but I clenched and dragged
at the rope to keep the children at my side."
Winds tearing at 235 km an hour threatened to pluck
her and her children from their perch and sea water

pushed up by a tidal surge reached to her waist. She
lost her grip twice, sliding into the water, and twice she
slithered back up in pitch darkness, but after four hours
her house gave way and she plunged among tioatmg
debris.
I swam blindly, I often dived to push up my drowning
sons I remember being hit by an electric pole and just
before passing out I saw another house and I climbed
on its roof," the thinly built woman said.
"It was madness all round. Invisible people were
screaming but I could see nothing.... Salim had fainted
and I was pumping his stomach for water," she said,
adding that her second perch collapsed at daybreak.
"The rope was shredding so I began swimming
again, but this time hands pulled me up and my children
to another roof crowded with people like us," she said.
Deep cuts on her neck and waist where the rope was
tied stood out like welts from a whip.

U.N. relief team rushes
to Bangladesh
UNITED NATIONS. May 3.
The U.N. has started sending assistance to
cyclone devasted Bangladesh as its various
agencies geared themselves to rush help and es■ sentials in a big way. A team of the United Na' tions Disaster Relief Organisation is already in
Bangladesh helping the Government assess the
damage and identify immediate needs. The es• sential commodities are expected to be airlifted
shortly. The organisation has started moving sup­
plies from neighbouring countries.
Chittagong in a trance: The death toll from the
devastating cyclone that hit Bangladesh on Mon­
day may eventually reach if not surpass, that of
November 12-13. 1970 when at least 300.000
people died. This fear was expressed by one of
the country’s most prominent journalists who re­
turned on Thursday from a two.-day trip to the'
port city of Chittagong.
x
Waheedul Huq told the UPI that at least 10-20
thousand people had perished in Chittagong and
outskirts alone, and the toll could be as high as
50,000. "Chittagong city is passing through a
trance, where nothing seems real. Once a greentop city with numerous tall trees, it is now grey.
' The leaves have vanished. Few that are left look
as if they have been burned by fire," Huq said.
The city still had no electricity, telecommunica­
tion or water supply even on Thursday.
Outbreak of diarrhoea: Even as the operation
continues to airlift food and medicines to millions
of marooned survivors of the cyclone, health
workers are struggling to contain a raging diarj rhoea epidemic. More than 1.000 people have
died and an estimated 70,000 laid low by severe
; diarrhoea, that over the past four months has
overrun 20 districts— PTI, UPI & IPS

*

Begum Zia appeals to nation
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 3.

•

'

Talking to newsmen in the cyclone-hit areas,
the Bangladesh State Minister for Relief, Mr.
Lutfar Rahman Khan, said reports of casualties
were still pouring in from different affected areas.
islands and pockets.. Mr. Khan pointed out that

of the total one crore people directly affected, at
least 50 lakhs have been rendered shelterless.
• Eight merchant ships including two naval
vessels capsized in the Chittagong port, which
has gone completely inoperative. Hundreds of
fishing trawlers and other fishing boats and
vessels have also been damaged or drowned.
The fate of several thousand fishermen, who
were in the bay, is still uncertain, said agencies.
;In a radio and TV broadcast the Prime Minis­
ter, Begum Khaleda Zia. appealed in an emotion
choked voice to the people to rise to the occa­
sion. She requested her political opponents to
come forward with zeal and dedication in the
hour of crisis. The Prime Minister called all the
NGO’s — Ideal and foreign — to supplement the I
Government activities for mitigating human suf­
ferings. And she sought the help of the interna­
tional community with the relief work. At the call
of the Prime Minister, dozens of organisations, 1
institutions and persons have already started do- <
nating money, blood and help of other sorts.
The Government of the U.S., France, Japan,
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, China and many other •
Countries have sent their messages of condol­
ence announcing emergency aid for the cyclone
victims.

Despite the best of efforts mustered by the
Government reports reaching Dhaka
from •
farflung areas, said that the supply of relief
goods are inadequate in most places. Horrifying
tales of death and destruction are still pouring in I c
even though thousands of armed forces person- ' \
nel. Red Crescent volunteers and other agencies j I
are engaged in their round the clock operation, j
Many people' in the remotest areas such as t
Sandwip, Hatiya, Maheshkhali, Banshkhali, <
Urirchar and Kutubdia are reportedly starving |
since help has not reached these inaccessible *
areas.
z
Burying thousands' of corpses has posed yet c
another problem, especially in the areas which <
are still under water. Even after three days of the ;
deluge, the communications with Chittagong, j
and also with most affected areas, have not been <.
restored. The international telecommunication t
has been restored partially.
■
i

Cyclone toll put at 5 lakhs

DHAKA. May 3.Distraught rescue teams battled to cope with
the world's biggest recorded natural disaster
claiming an estimated 500,000 lives after Tues­
day's cyclonic storm devastated the Bangladesh
coast.
Rescue teams trying to reach marooned survi­
vors reported heavy casualty figures with hun­
dreds of thousands of bodies strewn across a
watery landscape, and several times more than
the official count of 92,255 dead till noon today.
Disease and starvation stalked the hapless sur­
vivors trapped in islets accessible only by the far
too few helicopters and speedboats.
The only succour reaching the victims seemed
to be special prayers held in mosques all over
the grief-stricken nation. Tomorrow is to be ob­
served as the day of national mourning.
A Red Crescent official at the control room in
the capital said they have no information about
the fate of 1.3 million people in Bashkhali and
Anwara upazilas in Chittagong as they have no
cyclone preparedness programme in those
areas.
The south-eastern island of Swandip where at
least 100,000 deaths have been reported is still
submerged under five to six feet of water. Other
islands
including
Hatua,
Kutubdia
and
Maheskhali were also submerged even four days
after the catastrophe.

Survivors
in
the
battered
Kutubdia.
Maheskhali, Chokoria, Swandip, Hatia, Char
Nijam, Urirchar and Nijhumdip islands are facing
tremendous hardships Succour is yet to reach
them as there is an acute transport problem and
disrupted communication network. — UNI

U.S. aid
R. Chakrapani reports from Washington:
About a dozen private groups in the U.S. in­
cluding the American, Red Cross, CARE, and
Salvation Army have opened their registers to
receive private contributions to channel relief to
the victims of the Bangladesh cyclone that has
claimed thousands of lives and left millions
homeless.

:

Additionally, the U.S. Administration, which
made an emergency cash allocation of $1,25,000
(about Rs. 25 lakhs) for relief work, said this
would be followed by further assistance as soon
as an assessment of the damage was received
from two of its teams at the U.S. Embassy in
Dhaka now working on relief needs. An official
of the Foreign Disaster Assistance said the de­
partment would move fast when a clear picture
of the ravages of the cyclone was available in a
matter of days.
The Bangladesh Embassy here is in touch with
the State Department. The Ambassador, Mr.
Ataul Karim, said his Government urgently need­
ed helicopters which were the only means of
reaching supplies to the stricken people in the
waterlogged areas. He had requested the State
Department for help in getting them.
The Bangladesh Finance Minister, Mr. Saifur
Rahman, who came here to attend the FundBank meeting, held discussions with the Secre­
tary General of the United Nations. Mr. Javier
Perez de Cuellar, to ask for food aid under the
World Food Security Programme
In Washington, he met officials of the Interna­
tional Monetary Fund, U.S. officials arid also
Senators and Congressmen to apprise them of
the situation and tell them of the urgency of pro­
viding massive relief to people rendered home-'
less and who were in need of food and clothes.
"All have assured their support" he said.
"Already some support has been extended by
the U.N.D.P. and the U.S. Government. The IMF
is sitting in a meeting tomorrow to propose en­
hanced support for Bangladesh."

Cong(l) contribution
Our Delhi Correspondent reportsThe Congress(l) president, Mr. Rajiv Gandhi,
today sanctioned Rs. 10 lakhs from the AICC(I)
Relief Fund for the cyclone victims. A cheque for
the amount would be presented to the Bangla­
desh High Commissioner in India, according to
the party spokesman, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee.

U.N. sends help: Page-5

More deaths reported in flood-ridden Bangla
DHAKA, May 8. (Reuter & PTI)
— Tornado and flash floods have
wreaked more devastation and killed
more people in Bangladesh, officials
said today, with the country already
* reeling from more than ■ 125,000
deaths caused by the worst cyclone in
its history*.
Dhaka divisional
commissioner
Waliul Islam said 25 bodies had been
recovered but he expected more to­
day.
“It is a tragic story of one woe
treading upon another,” he said.
MORE DEATHS: Sakhina Bibi,
22. lost her two-year-old baby in the
tornado. She said the wind tossed her
house in the air and the corrugated
steel sheets from the roof “flew like
Bangladesh Prime Minister Be­
missiles.”
gum Khaleda Zia wiping her tears
In a separate disaster, two boys
while talking to media persons in
drowned when flash floods swept
Dhaka on Tuesday. — UN1/AFP
across at least 132 sq.km of northeas­
photo
tern Slyhet region when three rivers.
burst their banks after heavy rains on relief and reconstruction aid for some
Tuesday.
four, million affected people.
.
The fresh floods hampered govemAt a meeting with donor countries
jment efforts to mobilise help for the on Tuesday, the government requested
{ victims of last week’s cyclone disaster. 23.9 billion taka ($ 670 million) in
t " Dhaka has appealed for S 1.4 billion immediate relief and 26.4 billion taka

($ 740 million) to help rebuild Ban­ would supply 20,000 tonne of wheat
gladesh, one of the world’s poorest and other foodgrains besides a dredger
to clear the Chittagong port, one of
countries.
AID PLEDGE: Meanwhile, Ban­ Bangladesh’s lifelines, of sunken ships’
gladesh has been assured of over $ 142 and boats.
HASINA BLAMES GOVT: Bangla
million of foreign economic assistance,
Opposition leader Sheikh Hasina has
official sources said* here today..
Out of this commitment, relief accused Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s
materials is worth $ 127,100 million, government of failing to provide relief
cash aid amounting to $ 11.65 million to the cyclone-affected people in
and food worth $4,212 million, they Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar.
Addressing a press conference in
said.
India is among the 12 countries and Chittagong yesterday after touring
organisations, which has made the aid some of the affected areas, Sheikh
commitments. The others being the Hasina said the administration was
United States, Australia, Canada, lacking coordination in conducting
Germany, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, relief operations with the result that
Pakistan, Japan, Netherlands, Swit­ the affected people did not receive any
zerland, Thailand and the World Food help even six days alter the cyclone on
Programme.
April 29.
“The people have been crying for
Bangladesh’s donor countries and
other international agencies, have also: food, shelter, clothes and medicines.
assured Dhaka of short-term relief and But there was none to help them”, she
long-term reconstruction assistance for said. .
Almost at the same time, Mrs. Zia,
feeding the cyclone-affected people
during a visit to Chittagong yesterday/
officially estimated to be 15 million.
distributed relief materials at six
French Minister for Humanitarian places. She directed the authorities to
Actions Bernard Kouchner, who was ensure that no one was left without
recently here, promised his country* government relief.

r

J)H

S' c/ J

x

6 Battered Bangladesh

Storm claims
WITH ALMOST THE entire coastal belt of Bangladesh 5 in Tripura

hit by the cyclone that crossed the coast near Chittagong
AGARTALA, May 3. (UNI)
earlier this week, it is clear that the death toll in this disaster At least five people were crushed to
will rise much higher than the estimates of 150,000 to 200,000 death and scores injured, and property
now being given out. Communications are badly disrupted in worth crores of rupees damaged dur­
an area where they are difficult at the best of times, covering ing the severe cyclonic storm which
as it does the delta of a mighty river system. Whole islands lashed Tripura twice since Wednesday
have disappeared from view under water, and the port of night.
Chittagong, Bangladesh’s second biggest city, itself looks like a
Official sources today said four
vast sheet of water from which a few tall buildings peep out. If people, two of them tribals, died in
30,000 residents of a small islet are feared to have drowned in house collapse in Ultachara and Kathe flood waters, and the delta contains tens or hundreds of ramchara areas in the worst affected
such islets, the figure of 200,000 dead in the worst cyclone to I north district, another person suc­
have hit independent Bangladesh must seem ridiculously low. | cumbed to his injuries after being hit
With relief supplies yet to get into top gear — most of the by a tree that was uprooted at Masubmerged islands having little room for helicopters to land — chabnagarunder Sabroom subdivision
and clean water as well as sanitation at a premium, it is obvious in south district.
that very soon starvation and epidemics of water-borne diseases
Earlier, on Tuesday night also, the
such as cholera will multiply the death toll several fold. It is a entire state along with neighbouring
sombre thought that early warning of the impending disaster Bangladesh ex^cricnced^a cyclone.
enabled at least a million people to be evacuated to relatively
safer, higher ground, but evidently to little avail as the coast
was battered by 240-kmph gales and the water rose two or
three metres above land.
The fledgling democratic government of Begum Khaleda
Continued from Page 1
Zia has appealed for massive international aid to combat the . epidemic would spread to other areas
crisis, which could not have come at a more inopportune ■ if water purifying tablets were not
moment as it struggles to establish its credentials. The iI despatched immediately to the affcctinadequacy of foreknowledge of the disaster in mitigating its II ed areas.
effects highlights the vulnerability of coastal Bangladesh. I’ Newspersons and photographers,
What was once a country well endowed by nature is now who visited the cyclone-lorn areas, saw
exposed as one that, thanks to the shallowness of the extensive thousands of marooned people in a
coastal/ delta region, must literally struggle to keep its head deplorable condition hungry, thirsty,
half naked and without shelter.
above water. Environmentalists concerned about the rapid
discharge of heat-retaining or greenhouse gases into the i Despatch of relief to many remote
isolated islands have been hamatmosphere by the excessive consumption of fossil fuels have ?• and
pcred by shortage of transport and
been citing the example of Bangladesh as one country of which * disrupted communication links.
large tracts will get submerged as the greenhouse effect causes
The Bangaldesh Government has.
oceans to rise by a couple of metres the world over. This
sought at least 20 helicopter from)
week’s cyclone constitutes advance indication of the kind of > abroad to air-drop foodstuff and^
long-term effects that may be expected as the greenhouse
medicines.
effect builds up in the crucial decades to come. Climatologists
Heart-rending pictures of, the cy­
are probably equally concerned about another phenomenon, clone disaster in Bangladesh, women
perhaps related — the growing frequency of cyclones in the wailing, the bodies of men, women and
Bay of Bengal affecting States on India’s coast. Although the babies washed ashore along with those
prediction and mitigation of natural disasters is making much of cattle, have been shown on US TV
progress under the onslaughts of modern science, if contem­ as the Government and private relief
porary civilisation becomes responsible for increasing the agencies consider how to help.
International aid
frequency of such catastrophes, this is one area in which we
The US has so far given S 125,000
will have to run as fast as we can to stay in the same place.

Tough1 task for 4
rescue teams

in immediate aid, but State DcpartI ment spokesperson Margaret Tutu’ wiler said at Washington this was only

Bangla toll 5 lakh: tough
task for rescue teams
water and food to 10 million survivors
in 16 districts in coastal areas, officials
said.
Flags will fly half mast tomorrow to
mourn the. victims and special prayers
would be held all over the country in
all shrines.
The Government has also cancelled
until further orders feasts, festivals and
illuminations at all levels and ask
Rescue teams trying to reach ma­ people to observe austerity till the
rooned survivors reported heavy cas­ crisis is over.
ualties with hundreds of thousands of
Islands still cut off
bodies strewn across a water}' land­
scape, and several times more than the
Contact with many remote islands
official count of 92,255 dead till noon in Chittagong and Barisal are yet to be
today.
established.
Disease and starvation stalks hapless
A Red Crescent official at the
survivors trapped in islets accessible control room in Dhaka said there was
only by the far too few helicopters and no information about the fate of 1.3
speedboats.
million people in Bashkhali and Anwara Llpazilas in Chittagong as they
National mourning
have no cyclone preparedness prog­
The only succour reaching the vic­ ramme in those areas.

DHAKA, MAY 3.
(UNI & PTI):
|
istraught
rescue
I
teams in Bangladesh are
battling to cope with Tuesday’s
devastating cyclone, the world’s
biggest recorded natural disaster,
which has claimed an estimated
5,00,000 lives.
*

D

tims seemed to be special prayers held
in mosques all over the grief-stricken
nation. Tomorrow is to be observed as
the day of national mourning.
Government agencies and voluntary
workers are working overtime to res­
tore communications and reach fresji

The south-eastern Swandip island,
where at least 100,000 deaths have
been reported is still submerged under
five to six feet of water. Other islands,
including Hatua, Kulubdia and Naheskhali are also submerged qven four
days after the catastrophe.

The storm killed .60,000 .people
around the port city.of Chittagong
alone, Communications Minister Oli
Ahmed told Dhaka's Cyclone Prepa­
redness Centre.
Officials earlier said more than 29,
000 people died around the coastal
resort of- Cox’s Bazar, and ..3,Q00_in
Noakhali coastal district.
The toll is going up like anything
and may go up to anywhere, said an
official, who asked not to be identified.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Begum
Khaleda Zia appealed on Thursday for
aid for 10 million people made
homeless by the disaster.

count surpasses 100,000, said State
Minister for Relief, Lutfur Rahman
Khan.
Some of the islands are still under
water after waves six metres swept
over them.

Thousands of corpses and animal
carcasses from the worst-hit islands of
Swandip,JHaUa.. Kutubdian,_Baskhali
and.-Mahcskhali are drifting down­
stream, posing a serious health hazard
in the country’s southern coastal belt.

Mass burials

The corpses arc accumulating in
different embankments of Cautar Di:
strict.. An official in Feni said fish­
ermen netted 130 bodies from Feni
Appeal for help
river yesterday.
The local administration, with the
“Losses caused by the worst cy­
clone in memorable time have sur­ help of relatives of the dead, have
passed all previous records. So I tell been recovering bodies drifting ashore
you people around the world that we and despatching them in trucks to
desperately need your help immedia­ . different places for mans burials.
tely”, she said in a television broadcast. A diarrhoea epidemic has reportedly
The storm, with winds up to 235 broken out in Kutubdian, Maheskali.
kph, pounded Bangladesh’s densely Swandip, Hatta, Bauhhalli .and Bhola
populated coast and at least a dozen following scarcity of clean drinking
offshore islands in the Bay ofBengal water, food and medicines.
An official of London-based OXfor’ "nine hours on Monday night,
flattening buildings and sinking boats. fam, Mr. Saidur Rahman said the
“I shall not be surprised if the death
Continued on Page 9 Col. 2

FRIDAY, MAY 3, 1991

/ x.-^

.<

I

Travails of
Bangladesh

THE DEATH TOLL of over 50,000 reported
to have been taken by the cyclone which hit
the entire coastline of Bangladesh with the
Chittagong region reeling under its fury reveals
once again the stark helplessness of this coun­
try against a natural disaster which has been
vengefully heading towards it almost every
year. What makes this recurring tragedy even
more poignant is that the trail of the cyclone
originating in the Bay of Bengal has during the
last few years become as unerringly predict­
able as the havoc it was going to cause has
been unstoppable. On this as on the earlier oc­
casions, the cyclone, first seen centred 900 ki­
lometres in the Bay of Bengal south east of Ma­
dras. started giving the jitters to populations as
far apart as southern Tamil Nadu, Madras,
Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Bengal which
could have been its destinations. But it was
heading towards Bangladesh presumably
drawn by its hopelessly exposed and utterly
defenceless coastline. The travail of Bangla­
desh which has been repeatedly ravaged in this
manner makes the cyclone in its destructive
ferocity seem a mythical calamity.

The huge death toll and the enormous de­
struction which the cyclone has inflicted on
Bangladesh make it imperative that India and
the rest of the international community rush all
the aid they can to this cruelly menaced coun­
try. The cyclone warning systems which India
has in recent years installed in its coastal re­
gions have made possible the initiation of
measures well in time to move people living
close to the beaches to safer places. Building
of cyclone shelters in the vulnerable stretches
along the coast has also been of help. The es­
tablishment of an effective and reliable com­
munications network to spread the warnings to
the people is a vitally necessary adjunct. The
colossal loss of lives running to tens of thou­
sands almost every time Bangladesh is hit by
cyclones might have resulted either from the
non-availability of cyclone warning systems in
the numbers needed or that the topography of
the coastal areas cut up over a wide stretch by
rivers makes it extremely difficult to effect
movement of the vulnerable population well in
time. Any assistance which India can provide to
Bangladesh to protect its people better from
cyclones should be ungrudgingly given.
The increasing massiveness of destruction
being wrought by cyclones makes it necessary
for scientists and meteorologists to further push
back the frontiers of knowledge about them.
The International Monsoon Experiment or
Monex carried out in earlier years helped to­
wards gathering valuable data which have
thrown light on cyclone genesis and behaviour.
Specially built sturdy aircraft flown by the Na­
tional Hurricane Centre in Miami, U.S. in butter­
fly formations into storm clouds added vastly to
the knowledge of air movements in the middle
troposphere and at altitudes between 10,000
and 25.000 feet and their temperature and hu-

midity conditions. Studies carried out recently
on tropical cyclones indicated that increases in
the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmos­
phere, now becoming an ecological menace,
would raise the destructive potential of tropical
cyclones by 60 per cent Putting to effective
use the knowledge of cyclones available with
the international community' of scientists and
meteorologists implies not only the extensive
rigging up of effective warning systems but
also an administrative infrastructure which
could save the populations hazardously expos­
ed to the fury of the elements. Getting the ad­
ministration prepared and the people geared to
moving out of vulnerable areas at short notice
would no doubt be a major challenge. The sor­
row which the cyclones cause with distressing
frequency to Bangladesh should impart an ur­
gency to the task.

6

THE HINDU, Friday, May 3, 1991.

X/

A/—, __ _

.

Many Bangladesh
fetenote stl submerged
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA, May 2.
Serious environmental problems have been re­
ported from Bangladesh's coastal areas ravaged
by Monday night's cyclone and tidal wave. The
slick from the damaged oil tankers has caused
the deaths of thousands of fish.

Reports reaching here from the cyclone-batter­
ed islands off Chittagong, where human casualty
was unprecedented, said the sea water off the
city has been covered with an oil layer. Sea ani­
mals, besides fish have also died in large num­
bers.
The cyclonic storm accompanied by a nearly
20 ft high tidal wave devoured many parts of the
Chittagong region. A dreadful silence prevails as
most of the people, animals, trees and houses
particularly in the island areas were washed
away.

The casualties in the several densely populat­
ed islands like Kutubdia, Sandwip, Banshkhali,
St. Martin, Maheshkhali and Chakoria can only
be imagined. Despite repeated efforts, relief heli­
copters could not land in those places due to
nonavailability of dry land. Nor could the
rivercrafts go there due to bad weather.
Kutubdia and Chakoria.were under atleast 10
ft deep water till this morning. Even after three
days of the calamity, a large part of Sandwip is­

land was under 5 to 7 ft deep water.
Hundreds of small fishing boats including traw­
lers and many seagoing vessels have either sunk
or been badly damaged in the cyclone. The mil­
lion dollar Karnafuli bridge, built recently with
foreign assistance, was completely damaged.
The Patenga international airport of Chitta­
gong is still out of order. Many airforce planes
landing in the nearby base were heavily damag.ed. Three ships of the Bangladesh Navy were
also badly damaged.
One of the greatest problems now faced is
disposal of the thousands of decomposed human
and animal bodies. Even after several mass
graves, thousands more are lying uncared for.
Those* who have survived are in no position to
even do the minimum religious formalities for
their dearest ones.
The armed forces, which have been pressed
into service in almost all the worst-hit places, are
reportedly engaged in helping the people bury
the bodies, particularly in the Chittagong region.

10 MILLION HIT

1,50,000 feared dead in
cyclone-ravaged Bangla
KUTUBDIA (Bangladesh), Chittagong and Hatia in the Noakhali
May 2. (UNI & PTI) districts where 60,000 to 70,000 were
feared killed.
HE killer cyclone that struck
the coastal areas of Bangla­ Decaying bodies
desh has taken a toll of about
The atmosphere of Kutubdia, Ma1,50,000 lives so far as details of heshkhali, Chokoria Hatia and Swan­
the devastation started pouring dip recked of decaying putrid bodies.
in.
Survivors frantically searched for dry

ponds and tanks were filled with saline
sea water and floating bodies.
Bangladesh today mounted relief
operations to provide succour to some
10 million hit by the nation’s worst
cyclone in 20 years, battling crippling
shortage of aircraft and speedboats.
A UPI despatch from Dhaka quot­
ed a Bangladesh Minister as saying
A UN I correspondent who visited places for funerals as most of the land that the toll might reach two lakh.
the area found scenes of death and was under 5-8 feet of water.
Rescue and relief workers said re­
devastation in Kutubdia, an islet inports of deaths were pouring in from
Succour is yet to reach these re­
habitatcd mostly by fishermen.
different areas.
mote and isolated islands even three
Thousands of corpses and animal
The official BSS news agency
days after the natural catastrophe
quoted the Communications Minister
carcasses were floating in the sea
struck. The survivors in these
waters around thcJslet once_inhabited
Oli Ahmed as saying the cyclone hit
cyclone-tom islands were passing their
by about .80,000 people.
about 10 million people and flattened
days beneath open skies without food
Silence reigned in the islet, the
more than 10 islands in the Bay of
and water. Winds with 50 to 60 kmph
worst-hit spot through which the cy-,
Bengal and densely populated coastal
still lash Kutubdia, Maheshkhali and
clone swept al 235 kmph in the early
belt.
Swandip.
hours of Tuesday leaving no trace of
Unfed and half-clad coastal dwellers 16 districts hit
human habitation in its wake.
were seen scrambling for relief as a
The relief operations were hamper­
helicopter of the Bangladesh Air For­ ed by lack of helicopters and speed­
Buried
At least 30,000 dwellers of this ce tried to land on Wednesday after­ boats. Food supplies were not enough
small islet surrounded by the Bay of noon. But their hopes were soon and more lives would be lost if com­
Bengal were believed to have been dashed when the copter failed to land munication lines are not, established
due to lack of dry place and left after soon, an official said adding the cy­
buried in the sea.
A similar picture of corpses was only dropping some medicine. .
clone hit. 16 of the- country’s ..64
seen in the islets of Maheskhali and
Volunteers working in these areas districts.
Chokoria in^Cox’s Bazar, Swandiplh feared the outbreak of epidemics as
India today announced Rs. 1.5 crorc

T

worth of aid to the victims of the
cyclone in Bangladesh.
In response to an appeal by Dhaka
to the international community for
help, the Indian Government decided
to place three helicopters at Bangla­
desh’s disposal to take part in relief
work, an External Affairs Ministry
spokesman said here.
The European Community is giving
Bangladesh emergency food and me­
dical supplies worth $ 12 million to
help the millions of people injured or
left homeless by Monday’s cyclone.
A spokesman for the EC Commis­
sion today at Brussels said it had
agreed to buy S 9.6 million worth of
wheat and vegetable oil from Bangla­
deshi Government stocks for imme­
diate distribution to victims.
Medical supplies, tents, blankets
and other supplies worth a further $
2.4 million would be distributed by
the Red Cross and other relief orga­
nisations, he said.
Three teams from the British char­
ity organisation Oxfam have joined the
relief operation, airlifting food and
water purification tablets to Chittagong, a spokesman for the Charity”said

FRIDAY, MAY 3, 1991 t

.

Travails of
Bangladesh
THE DEATH TOLL of over 50,000 reported
to have been taken by the cyclone which hit
the entire coastline of Bangladesh with the
Chittagong region reeling under its fury reveals
once again the stark helplessness of this coun­
try against a natural disaster which has been
vengefully heading towards it almost every
year. What makes this recurring tragedy even
more poignant is that the trail of the cyclone
originating in the Bay of Bengal has during the
last few years become as unerringly predict­
able as the havoc it was going to cause has
been unstoppable. On this as on the earlier oc­
casions, the cyclone, first seen centred 900 ki­
lometres in the Bay of Bengal south east of Ma­
dras, started giving the jitters to populations as
far apart as southern Tamil Nadu, Madras,
Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Bengal which
could have been its destinations. But it was ■
heading towards Bangladesh presumably
drawn by its hopelessly exposed and utterly
defenceless coastline. The travail of Bangla­
desh which has been repeatedly ravaged in this
manner makes the cyclone in its destructive
ferocity seem a mythical calamity.

The huge death toll and the enormous de­
struction which the cyclone has inflicted on
Bangladesh make it imperative that India and
the rest of the international community rush all
the aid they can to this cruelly menaced coun­
try. The cyclone warning systems which India
has in recent years installed in its coastal re­
gions have made possible the initiation of
measures well in time to move people living
close to the beaches to safer places. Building
of cyclone shelters in the vulnerable stretches
along the coast has also been of help. The es­
tablishment of an effective and reliable com­
munications network to spread the warnings to
the people is a vitally necessary adjunct. The
colossal loss of lives running to tens of thou­
sands almost every time Bangladesh is hit by
cyclones might have resulted either from the
non-availability of cyclone warning systems in
the numbers needed or that the topography of
the coastal areas cut up over a wide stretch by
rivers makes it extremely difficult to effect
movement of the vulnerable population well , in
time. Any assistance which India can provide to

6

THE HINDU, Friday, May 3, 1991.

, *

i

Many BaogBadtesh
fefe^ds stfll subowrged
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA. May 2.
Serious environmental problems have been re­
ported from Bangladesh’s coastal areas ravaged
by Monday night's cyclone and tidal wave. The
slick from the damaged oil ’tankers has caused
the deaths of thousands of fish.

Reports reaching here from the cyclone-batter­
ed islands off Chittagong, where human casualty
was unprecedented, said the sea water off the
city has been covered with an oil layer. Sea ani­
mals. besides fish have also died in large num­
bers.
The cyclonic storm accompanied by a nearly
20 ft high tidal wave devoured many parts of the
Chittagong region. A dreadful silence prevails as
most of the people, animals, trees and houses
particularly in the island areas were washed
away.
The casualties in the several densely populat­
ed islands like Kutubdia, Sandwip, Banshkhali,
St. Martin. Maheshkhali and Chakoria can only
be imagined. Despite repeated efforts, relief heli­
copters could not land in those places due to
nonavailability of dry land. Nor could the
rivercrafts go there due to bad weather.
Kutubdia and Chakoria were under atleast 10
ft deep water till this morning. Even after three
days of the calamity, a large part of Sandwip is­

land was under 5 to 7 ft deep water.
Hundreds of small fishing boats including traw­
lers and many seagoing vessels have either sunk
or been badly damaged in the cyclone. The mil­
lion dollar Karnafuli bridge, built recently with
foreign assistance, was completely damaged.
The Patenga international airport of Chitta­
gong is still out of order. Many airforce planes
landing in the nearby base were heavily damag­
ed. Three ships of the Bangladesh Navy were
also badly damaged.
One of the greatest problems now faced is i
disposal of the thousands of decomposed human
and animal bodies. Even after several mass
graves, thousands more are lying uncared for.
Those who have survived are in no position to
even do the minimum religious formalities for
their dearest ones.
The armed forces, which have been pressed
into service in almost all the worst-hit places, are
reportedly engaged in helping the people bury
the bodies, particularly in the Chittagong region.

NEW YORK: Skyscraper's birthday: lhe world's
most famous skyscraper, the Empire State Building, I
celebrated its 60th birthday on Wednesday with
visits from King Kong, actress Fay Wray and officials who hailed the building as an inspiration.
Guests sang "Happy Birthday" as Wray, 83. cut one ;
of the two cakes decorated with icing depicting the I
443-metre-high building.

Cyclone toll in
i Bangla
reaches 10,000

'

1
■

‘

From Ataus Samad
DHAKA, May 1. — About ten
thousand people have perished in
Bangladesh in the cyclone that hit the
off-shore islands and the coastal areas
of the country last Monday night and
Tuesday morning, relief officials said
here today. A non-government source
claimed in Chittagong that the
number of the dead people on the
Sandwip Island alone may reach 20,
000 but”there"was no independent
confirmation of this. The man who
was making this claim is a local
politician of Sandwip Island.
The number of the loss of human
lives in the Bangladesh cyclone in­
creased dramatically today when the
development officer of the Bangladesh
Red Crescent Society on the Sandwip
Island managed to establish contact
with his head office in Dhaka. He told
the Dhaka office that at least 5000 to
6000 people have been killed in the
Island when it was hit by the storm
and the sea surge. Waler is still
standing on the Island. Mr. Saidur
Rahman, head of Oxfam, who visited
the Kulubdia Island today said that
2000 people might have been killed in
Kutubdia Island. He said that not a
single house was standing in the
Island. Thousands of carccasses were
Boating on the water. Reporters who
flew in with him also saw human
bodies.
Mr. Saidur Rahman said that he
believed that the death toll in the
cyclone in Bangladesh has passed 10,
000 by now.
According to a PTI correspondent,
at least one lakh people were feared
dead in the cyclonic storm.
The cyclone slammed the coastal
areas of Bangladesh at a speed of 233

KPH.
BSS quoting Bangladesh Navy' said
according to preliminary reports, pro. perlies worth about Taka 5000 crore
were destroyed in the cyclone.
About 90 per cent crops and 60 to A
i 70 per cent houses were destroyed or
j damaged in Uatkania, Lohavara,
i Chandnaish, Boaklhali, Fatikchhari,
I Raozan, Sandwip and Rangunia
'
Reuter adds: The navy and other
’ rescue ships were struggling to reach
j remote islands in the Bay of Bengal,
’ battered by the cyclone and swamped
; by water. It quoted officials as saying
i 20,000 people were missing.
Meanwhile, in New Delhi President
R. Venkataraman and Prime Minister
>1 Chandra Shekhar today expressed
sorrow over the loss of lives and
suffering caused by the severe cycloJ nic storm.
x
■
In his message to the acting Presi­
dent of Bangladesh Mr. Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed, Mr. Venkataraman
said “our heart goes out to the people
of Bangladesh in their hour of tirbu• lation” and asked the Bangladesh
President to accept the Indian people
and his “deepest sympathy”.
The Prime Minister, Mr. Chandra
Shekhar, in his message, to his Ban­
gladeshi counterpart expressed “deep
distress” at the loss of lives and wi­
despread devastation caused by the
cyclone.

Over 50,000 killed in
Bangladesh cyclone
From Haroon Habib
DHAKA, May 1.
At least 50,000 people are feared dead in a
devastating cyclonic storm and tidal surge which
battered almost the entire coastline of Bangla­
desh, especially the Chittagong region on Mon­
day night. According to unofficial reports, the toll
may rise further. (A PT1 report said the toll has
crossed one lakh.)
However, the official BSS news agency put
the figure at 30,000, quoting the Communications
Minister, Mr. Oli Ahmed, who is guiding the relief
and rescue operation in the worst-hit areas of
Chittagong, Cox's Bazar and several islands of
the Bay.
The agency said about 25.000 people may
have been killed in Sandwip, Uricchar, Banskhali,
Sitakunda, Anwara. Patenga and Halisahar areas
of the Chittagong port city during the storm.
Mr. Ahmed, who flew over Chakpria, Cox's
Bazar and other islands including Kutubdia also
said more than 2,000 people died in Chittagong
area alone. The Minister, who hails from Chitta­
gong, feared the toll might cross 50,000.

One crore affected
About one crore people have been badly af­
fected in the storm that rayaged_4Z_coastal
' upazjlas_in_16_distrjpts of..the country, the State
Minister for Relief, Mr. Lutkar Rahman told news­
persons tonight He said most of the areas were
still under water and 90 to 95 per cent of .the
houses were washed away.
The casualty figure keeps increasing with
passing time as the relief and rescue workers are
engaged in round-the-clock operations. Bangla­
desh television crews who overflew the coastal

islands of Banskhali, Kutubdia, Uricchar,. Hatiya
and Sandwip in helicopters, saw a compietefy
lifeless area, where only a'few pucca buildings
were saved. Relief officials said thousands of
people may have drowned in the Bay.
The Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia, tried
in vain to land in those places which were believ­
ed to have been totally washed away.
Thousands of mutilated bodies and dead cattle
could be seen scattered in vast tracts of the
coastal area from the helicopters.

Mass graves
A pall of gloom engulfed the nation as hun­
dreds of victims were being buried in mass
graves.

and perhaps on an unprecedented scale. The
Government had mobilised all its manpower and
resources and already launched a massive relief
operation. But the magnitude of u ie damage was
such that it might be impossible • ar the Govern­
ment alone to meet the challenge and mitigate
the sufferings of the people, she added.

Due to Tack of communications with the batter­
ed areas, the supply of essential commodities, in­
cluding medicare, could not be rushed. Immedi­
ate airdropping of food, water purifying tablets,
safety matches, salt and life-saving drugs in the
remote coastal areas is urgently needed, al­
though relief operations by the government and
non-goyernment agencies are on. Contingents of
Army. Navy and Air Force have already been
deployed to help the people.
The U.S. Government has provided medical
supplies worth $2 millions, which' include emerg­
ency medicines, surgical instruments and other
accessories.
The two-decade old cyclone prepardness pro-'
9“nmPT™r^d effectlve|y inSising

With the partial restoration of the telecom­
munications system, the news of more and more
deaths are pouring into the capital from far-flung
areas, which remained inaccessible during the
last two days.
233-kmph gales: The cyclone slammed the
coastal areas of the country at a speed of 233_
kmph. This was the severest storm to hit Bangla­ Inni^nff- 'f Time'y messages of the meteoroogical office relayed to the coastal areas led to
desh during the last 20 years. A cyclone on No­
0 Over 3 5 lakh people from
vember 12. 1970 had left one million people Snrm rr
areaS t0 Cyclone
dead..
Several foreign ambassadors who also visited »
some of the affected areas today by helicopter,
reported horrifying tales of death and devasta­
tion.
The Prime Minister. Mr. Chandra Shekhar, ex­
The Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia. has pressed deep distress over the traqjc loss of.
appealed to the international community to come lives and widespread devastation caused by the
forward to help the people of Bangladesh. In an cyclone in Bangladesh.
appeal she said that the Government had taken
In a message to Begum Zia, he conveyed In­
all precautionary measures which had minimised dia s heartfelt sympathy to those affected by.
the loss of human lives. But the loss was huge this natural calamity.
/

PM’s distress

The south-eastern port city of Chittagong in Bangladesh is submerged in water as a strong typhoon hit the densely populated
coastal area on Tuesday. Over 5,000 people died and millions were left homeless as 20 ft (6 metre) high waves pounded the lowlying coast and howling winds razed dwellings.— AP/PTI

From Haroon Habib

and other bases early today to assess the extent surge. The icersity gradually increased and the|?
of damage, could not land in the worst-hit areas cyclone withacore of hurricane speed winds ofy .
DHAKA. April 30
A powerful cyclone accompanied by strong ti­ such as Swandip, Urirchar, Feni and Noakhali as up to 235 krruhm gusts and squalls battered thej
dal waves which struck almost the entire they remained under water. Officialslfhcrpfioto- entire coastlrefrom Satkhira to Teknaf.
coastline of Bangladesh on Monday night is fear­ graphers saw from air thousands of people tak­
The port cjyof Chittagong, which is not nor­
ed to have killed hundreds of people and caused ing shelter on the rooftops and trees. Bodies of
mally affectejw such catastrophe, was affected i
the
victims
were
also
seen
around
Swandip
and
extensive damage to houses and properties. In­
badly with nest of the city areas going under
itial reports said over 1,300 people have been Urirchar
water.
killed.
2,000 fishermen missing: Official sources said
An Air Fora helicopter with the Air Chief, Atr
The latest figures of human casualty received that several hundred fishing boats with nearly
from various affected areas and from various 2,000 fishermen are yet to return to shore in Vice MarshaHlomtazuddin Ahmed, managed to
land near theChittagong airport this noon and
sources said that the Cox's Bazar area itself lost Cox's Bazar area. Thousands of houses had
551 people, 193 were killed in Noakhali. 55 in been flattened or blown away by the strong wind Carried back sports of extensive damage to the
Bhola, seven in Barguna and four in Laxipur. that damaged the country's largest ground satel­ airport and acraft there.
Accordingd unofficial estimates, about seven
About a hundred people were killed in Char­ lite station in Betbunia, disrupting communication
million peoplen the coastal areas have been af­
fashion island. While the above break up of with other ports of the world
fected in the I districts. The storm also breach­
casualty’ was announced by the Bangladesh tele­ \ The storm started to batter the coastal belts
ed embankmtts and submerged many areas of
vision. it is expected that the toll may shoot up ion Monday evening with low lying areas includ­
the world’s lagest mangrove forest of SundarAir Force helicopters which flew from Dhaka ing the islands going under strong wind and tidal
bans killing hndreds of deer and tigers.
i

1,200 killed P/V
as cyclone
I hits Bangla
DHAKA, April .30. (UNI) —
About 1,200 people were killed and
several thousands missing as a de’ vastating cyclone struck the southern
.

coast of Bangladesh today.
About seven million coastal dwel­
lers were affected and thousands of
huts damaged when the cyclone with a
windspeed of 235 km crossed the
Chittagong Cox-Bazar area near
Mcghna estuary at 03.00 hours.
State-owned television said at least
■ 700 people were killed in Noakhali
and Cox-Bazar districts. It said the
’ death toll could rise as more reports of
devastation come from the interior
. islands.
The storm, the severest in recent
'state.

™ . D/1

Tripura mt

j

Continued from Page 1

memory, snapped telecommunication
link with the outside world as the
Bctbunia satellite system collapsqd
under the impact of the cyclone. In all
14 districts were hit.
Government officials could not im­
mediately ascertain the extent of the
damage to human lives.and properties
but unofficial reports indicated the
damage was likely to be of a very high
magnitude.
TRIPURA HIT: Meanwhile, the
cyclonic storm lashed Tripura today,
leaving a trail of destruction causing
extensive damage throughout the
state.
According to official sources in
Agartala, the most affected areas arc
Belonia, Sabroom and Amarpur sub­
divisions of south Tripura district.
Standing crops and property worth
several crores of rupees are feared
damaged. Reports of devastation are
still pouring in.
SAUDI SHIP RESCUED: Battle­
ships of the Indian Navy were today
towing to safety a drifting Saudi flag
vessel “MV Majid II” caught in a
severe cyclonic storm in the Bay of
Bengal, according to reports reaching
the naval headquarters here.
Naval helicopters had lowered a
medical team on board the Saudi ,
vessel on charter with the Andaman
and Nicobar Island administration, to
look after 782 persons on board the
vessel including a crew of 62.
The ship was caught in a severe
cyclonic strom in the Bay of Bengal on :
Sunday night and lost contact with the i
shore.
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