RF_DM_10_SUDHA.pdf

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1

RF_DM_10_SUDHA

I

DEff?AN HERALD, FRIDAY, AUGUST 8, 1997
B

^30 kids hospitaMsedaSr
consuming e
—
gy Our Staff Reporter
the children admitted have been
given
the children as per the
BANGALORE, Aug 7
kept ^der observation, she said.
lllcutoIUO
Over 30 children
children from
the
,
Sunandamma
of
Bolare
village,
wh^tb^f^^
'XXT1 8
from the
Sunandamma of Bolare village wheat-base
.
wnose
p^Udren
’i^****— J^shmi
▼ _i » f •(5) and Jaggery, gram and other essentad
^^nwadi kendraa vi
ofw Nettigere
^2
SC
^
jNettigprp
r> .
------- —
viliage in Bangalore South Taluk tha^a (9) were hos
hospitalise
d, said minerals and vitamins. The frJd
village
Pitalised,
w^re admitted to Vani Vilas Hos- a thin^h8
flrSt time that such “ ^^^d into balls with warm
Pital dueto su^fo^™.' 3
had ---------------mgJiere today.
•The children started t—
4m ^h* tongues turned blackish
sppn after they consumed the enanganwadi
She said according
according to
to the
eacher, said that 34 children had ^ganwadi worker who prepared
em food given to them at the
d at
food
at the
the school the eS
midra this afternoon. The consumed the food. Some of the the foo
b11^Shared 1116 f00d with food
f00d^
ven to
t0 the children todfy
given
^anwadi teachers and others
hfunediately rushed them to the
children of the village, she
last few packets left
hospital.
said. As soon as we saw the chil‘
food
15 suppl•The children were administered dren vomitting, we suspected iedinonekgpolythen^eT’
ofal
£lshy>” she said. Two
--------- --- su
<
cjw rehydration
rehydration solution^ORS)
solution (ORS) vZfr
she
asked the
immediately after their adm^sion sWon^dM V^ge Were requi’ 3881813111 director
XmLdMtely.after their admission
tno,,* 4.
■" of the depart/
aj>d the condition of the children hnwitai1
chndren to the ment to mrect
direct the
the anganwadi
anganwatf
!•
U(lren hospita1’ she added.
supervisors
ij Jsaid
jsaid to
to be
be stahU
stable.
®^^vlsors not
not to
to givr^SX
give chUdrCn
Oj f°od in
*ii the
uic enSre
enure
•Poctors suspect the food was FORENSIC REPORT: Meanwhile S'17 m?re enerSy
Bangalore
when
contacted
by
Deccan
Herald
’
Bai
!
g31ore
(Urban)
district
till
fungus infected. A team of doctors
Director, Department of Woman S?Ch tUne
-•J as the particular uaicn
batch
comprising paediatricians were at­
mid Child Development Latha
eve+rgy food’from which todav’t
tending the children..
Krishna Rao said the forensic re packets -iwere
--------' be de‘
taken, could
^Resident
Medical
Officer
termined.
~
port
on
the
energy
food
would
be
IjQmma Shettar, who was monitor­
available by August 8. The direc­
She
said
today's
food
poisoning
ing the condition of the children tor of the Forensic Laboratory had
Mid chemical examination of the collected the samples of food and «afhan«-el?’emely serious matter
as the food was being supplied to
qo was being conducted to ascer­ also visited Vani Vilas Hospital.
"e^.y 33 lakh beneficiaries in
tain the exact cause. About half of
Ms Rao said the energy food 40,000 anganwadis in the entire
state under ICDS.

—«

2a X ■*’*—

I

Bhiwandi food poison victims await relief

..M

Anil Shinde

BHIWANDI The Bhiwandi Nizam
pur municipal council is in no posi
tion to honour its commitment to pay
the generous compensation it an
?
'<'.y
nounced for 113 powerloom labour
ers who were victims of a mysterious
SA
case of food poisoning last August,
council’s vice president Khan Mukht'”- Ahmed says.
ist year, the municipality’ an
nounced a compensation of Rs 1.5
lakh to the families of each of the 88
workers who succumbed to the poi­
son, as well as Rs 50,000 each to those
who survived.
“That compensation was announ
ced in the heat of the moment, when
a morcha of angry' labourers threate­
ned to turn violent. The officials had
to give a written statement to quell
5 them," Mr Ahmed says. “However,
we simply do not have such huge
at our disposal. We cannot af­
| funds
ford to fulfil the promise," he adds.
Incidentally, the Bhiwandi Ni
zampur is one of the richest munici I
pal bodies in the state The revenue
generated from octroi alone in 1995
was a whopping Rs 52.65 crores.
“Our budget allows for only a sum
of Rs 25,000 per head. We are, how­
ever, planning to announce a com
pensation of Rs 15,000 each to the fa­
milies of those who died. This an- 1
uncement will be made on August
, to mark the anniversary' of the tra
gedy,” says Mr Ahmed. When asked Mohammed Haroon, one of the survivors of last year’s Bhiwandi food poisoning case, stands in the
why the municipality will pay Rs ‘bhisi’ where the labourers ate the fatal meal. The premises are being used as a storehouse as well as
10,000 less than its “sanctioned budget”, he explains, “It will not look a dormitory at present.
get",
' proper if our compensation is higher have reportedly received the money. Thane collector Ujjwal Uke. “Mr Uke each of the districts and obtaining
than what the state and Central
‘ gov Says Sakina Bano, whose son-in-law is handling the matter. We have no the nz i of the next of kin. Once we
the credentials, we send
are sui
ernments had announced."
Sirtaj Ahmed died, “My daughter, idea about what is happening.”
• directly to the family ”
the
me
The Central and state govern- who lives in Uttar Pradesh, has not re
Mr Uke attributes the delay to the
ments announced a sum of Rs 50,000 ceived even a paisa so far. What com “meticulous” way in which the work
Bitterness is palpable among
and Rs 25,000 respectively as com pensation are you talking about?” Ni is being carried out. “The victims friends and relatives of the sunivors 1
pensation to the families of those sar Ahmed, who lost his brother Siraj were mainly migrant labourers
iaoouicis who
wnv U)() Mohammed Ishaq says, -My
who died. No monetary aid was de 5adds bitterly
’ “*The
r” officials are only hai]ecj from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and rriend Rashid recovered. But he ofdared for the survivors, though they interested in pocketing the money, Madhya Pradesh. Very often, in such ten sits down and starts rambling
continue to battle with the side ef- Wegavealltherequisitepaperstolo- cases, the actual relatives remain de nonsense. He has seizures and can­
fects of the poisoning even a year la- cal MLA Mohammed Ali Khan. But prived of the compensation while not concentrate for long. He finally
ter.
everytime we ask him about it, he others pocket the money,” he says. went away to his village. Why wasn’t
However, this paltry' compensa says that some papers are missing."
“In order to avoid such instances, any money sanctioned for people
tion is not forthcoming either. The
The MLA’s men, however, claim
families of only 24 of those who died that they submitted all documents to we are contacting the collectors ol like him?”

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Malaria,
viral fever
claim 11
in Cachar

FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT

Silchar, July 31: Eleven persons
have died allegedly of malaria and
viral fever in villages under the
Udarbond block in Cachar district
recently.
However, the state governmen­
t’s joint-director of health services
claimed only two persons had died
of malaria in the area.
A local organisation, the
Mahakuma Upajati Parishad, in a
press release, alleged that 11 per­
sons. belonging to the Dimasa
tribal family, had died of malaria
and viral fever.
It claimed the diseases had
broken out in a virulent form
in the Chaltacherra, Ratanpur
and Madhupur villages during
the past week. The victims
were aged between four month*
and 70 years.
With the advent of the mon­
soons every year, the rural habita­
tion in the Barak Valley districts
in south Assam fall prey to malar­
ia. During last April, about 1,100
malaria-affected people were iden­
tified after blood samples were
screened in the districts.
Reports of stray cases of death
due to malaria during the past
four months in the region were
ignored by officials, who main­
tained the victims had died of
other ailments.
•
The low-lying marshy tracts in
\ the districts are dotted with
cesspools of stagnant water, pro: viding breeding grounds for
• anopheles mosquitoes, which are
responsible for malaria, that has
become a common malady here.
June was observed as “malaria
month” to spread awareness
j about the disease among the
, local people.
According to the Cachar dis. trict officials, 15 malaria detection
and eradication units have been
set up to combat the disease in
i tQe district.
I y Dearth of adequate and trained
' manpower, however, has affected
the functioning of the malaria
units in Cachar and Hailakandi.
The districts have only 157 person/
j nel to fight malaria.
/

I - --------------------------- f

Revised TB project fails to breaknew ground
methods. In the absence of a strong
against the targeted 85 per cent," says times a week to the patient’s home training component to the TH pro
By Rupa China!
aiviv
umcKi,.
and
ensure
their
intake
in
her
pre
official.
it is unlikely that the TB
The Times of India News Service a BMC
Discussions with health workers at sence*. the alcoholic is seldom pm2-n be meaningfully ex
MUMBAI: A pilot project for the im the Ambedkar Road dispensary in ned down. The CHV cannot go to the Pro8ra7imelcan
panded
to
the
rest of the city by next
l
111^.
vw.**aa»g
Or
p..-—
---piementation of the ‘Revised Nation ^har, within the pilot site, however slum at odd hours of the evening
afTuberculosis Programme in Mum- reveajs (hat the project has not been night. In such cases the
tu“ programme year, as presently slated.
bai reveals significantly poor out ab
)e to
u nuill
Apart
from DOT,(aa key ----component
able
to break
break new
new ground.
ground. A
A process
process should allow flexibility to educate
reach
patients.
Based on a blue of se
j£ selection
se)ecljOn determines its out- -------and motivate a member ol the alco of tbe revised TB programme is that
------ --to r
-self
print devised by international donor reach (o (he 4Q per cent who seek holic’s famjiy jn supervising drug in­ patients are subjected to three spu­
agencies and unquestioning policy pUbljc sector services, creating a take."
tum tests, taken at the start, during
An estimated 50 per cent of TB pa­ and at the end of their therapy, to en- •
—kers in Delhi, the programme of- ftJse .
e of successfui treatment
no flexibility or scope for crea­ compliance and cure rates.
tients
nents are
are said
saio to
io be
dc seeking treat sure accurate detection and success
tive innovation, thus ultimately en­
Alcoholics, diabetics and migrants ment from private medical
medicai practi
practi- fui cure rates The programme envisuring its failure.
are amongst the most difficult to deal tioners. Studies have established that sages selting up jn a phased manner,
Faced with implementing the procateRories amongst TB patients, private sector doctors are prescribing
laboratories across Mumbai, ex
gramme at the grassroots, women
of the prOgramme at least 80 different drug regimens istjng or neW| each covering a popucommunity health volunteers (CH )
component of ‘Directly Obser- one of the major factors leading to |ation of one jakh. a trained techniand medical doctors, despite their
Treatment’ in the programme the 20 per cent multi drug resistance cian in eachsuch lab will exclusively
sincerity and hard work, are severely thus
nds an imrnense amount of amongst TB patients in Mumbai.
diagnoSe TB cases.
pvpn within the mlot
e
challenged . Th#>v
They are thwarted bv
by the
and.
on .>,hose pa.
lick of training and the■ absence of
who
y keen (0 be
The rising number of HIV patients
coordination among senior bureau- cure(j and
, are ready
■ to come on their
• • tempuo
developing TB however, poses»a new
challenge to the programme. Diag
cfats
,
own to health centres, provided
.. The revised TB programme offers
avajlab|e and services are or educate them about correct drug nosis
jn suc|1 patients is» not
treatment.
With
the
local
general
free drugs that assure a cure
.efficient. In the absence of adequate
usually possible with mere sputum
the health practitioner’s timings usually more tests. AIDS specialists say there is
Six to eight months’
*hde training and incentives, the
treatment course is strictly follo™^ staff are not mo,iVated to follow diffi suitable to a patient, the BMC staff need for X-ray diagnosis, as well a.s
The pilot pro|ect, implemented in
feel his efforts can be utilised in recognition of clinical markers such
three suburban wards of Mumbai
, monitoring drug treatment, in coor- a<, seyere weight loss of over ten per
sflnce October 1993, has barely seen
Says Jayant Chavan, a doctor at the dination with them.
cenl
cent o
cf bod\y weight,
J . chronic fever;
dhe detection of 4,000 TB cases to Ambedkar Road dispensary, “An al
and
diarrhoea.
While. TB have a life
conoiic
person
aeiauns
in
laiuiig
»«»
The
therapy
prescribed
by
the
re
j...
-----------(jate. An estimated 25,000 TB cases coholic person defaults in taking his
exist in these three wards, covering a medicines
---- This is the worst thing af- vised programme is fairly complex threatening reaction to lh1eudFug
—
• i and doctors in the project site have Thiacitazone, Mumbai’s health clin
Xn^than'^^^eacVed iZ.he
h™ a high incidence of alee undergone at least ten days of inten- ics are 00°^ with this drug- It's alqant manofnumoe
sive training before mastering the na ternative, Ethambutol, is not avail
people cored We have hoi
hoi and
and TB.
TB Although
Although our
our CHVs
CHVs are
are arveuarornsbefewmasterrnerhena
rhieved 74 per cent cure rate, as required to deliver the drugs three tionally recommended treatment able.

J.-.

aiwix

otMhe^egular use of condoms, to
offer enective treatment of
sexually-transmitted diseasc^ a”d
» enhance information and educapected to become
this
tional campaigns, he saia.
year, according to official Viet
The government’s campaign has
succeeded in alerting most Viet­
"^TreVt^
namese to the danger of AIDS but
crease over last
s ,n.f^
more carefully targeted messages
are now needed to encourage safe
sexual behaviour, he added.
Foreign
non-governmental
■"Sj’S.t0‘MUa o.
organisations are bringing their ex­
perience from other .countries to
Vietnam, where officialdom is re
ported, after some hesiunce, to be
ountry — known as sentmal sur
eillance - which is conducted
increasingly receptive to the new
vice a year.
^Save^the children (UK) has
Without a dramatic slow-down
new infection, officials are now
ioneered the peer education
edurauon
pioneered
Sng Vietnam will have close P
h in vietnarn to encourage
150 OS) people with HIV, the
P^r sexuai behaviour firs'
ms thaVcauses AIDS, by 2000.
among high-risk group>
M XVSTeSd that “^se“X a*and
” more
morerecently
recentlytoto
HANOI. Aug. 23 (DPA)
The vims that causes AiDb is

srssrasr®

SS”®
□ut P17,000 more will have
eadv died of the disease.
S the end of 1996 , 2 612 had
/eloped Ml-blown
full-blown AIDS and
' -loped
; 89 had died.
■ /ietnam is in its early stages of
\
epidemic. The J
• gh and it is going to get worse

gVeeonuUe^rwork has gradually taken in more of the gene
* blic jUst as the vims bre.^®
£om the high risk groups into the
pu^

i rsai'err®
IS—-JS2X** nematkjna?experts praise the
,rn oi government
nnvpmment’s commitment
a onfront the problem but the
* [tryz is
is still
still far
far from
from turning
turning me
the
e/on
rise of
of new
new
er
on the
the rapid
rapid rise

considered deviant.
gut increasingly there is
pragmatic understanding of fne
for clear knowledge about
transmission (of the v>rus|Mdthe
means to prevent that transmis
" a recent meeting of the sjon said programme manager
•* nal AIDS committee, ofhoffi- Mark Beukema in Ho Chi Minn
dty
admitted poor coordination
> lack of direction among concon
same ambivalence comphmaPr
J di organisations a jjaj
tbe government’s approach
& ;m
im in the fight against
agamst HIV
HIV,
“‘“Xg8 the spread of AIDS
* ling to an official media
infraVenous dmg uses.
ca . it of the meeting.
.
Until recently anyone caught
committee which is chaired
le or synnge was uncommittee,
’rA mty Prime Minister Nguyen
iously hauled off to gnm
ca
^es, where tra­
called on the oovemment
government
-ly double its expenditures
ditional medicines did little to sof­
anti-AIDS campaign from
ten cold Turkey withdrawal.
ent $ 5.5 million to $ 9 milAs a result needle sharing is
widespread, with assembly hnetually.
..
national donors contribute
like injection from a common drug
Kwvtce/
s much as the government
not the norm in city shooting gal
ng
on
the
campaign.
8-CA
0§d news in Vietnam is
elMore recently, the Vietnamese
j is a strong political com96 AN
government has allowed two cieafl
from the government at
needle pilot projects to go an£hc
st levels but the challenge
the initia! results
translate that into prac- and
encouraging, although it is uflcleai
1 -saving steps that will
if more will follow.
f
al difference, says Kraus.

^Disease stalks
flood-hit children
HT Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Aug. 7
With the Yamuna crossing the
danger mark, and flooding owIving areas, thousands of siumdwdlers find themselves homeless
today. With their homes waterlog­
nave been
been torceo
tu move
mvw
ged they have
forced to
^dadjoiningnearby
‘anerSi"^"ndudinj Vikas

not afford to consult a doctor.
He says that till about a year ago
there was a school near the slum
cluster where local residents could
medicine and check-ups for
eet m<
nee. “But ever since the school
free.
shut down, we have nowhere to
take the sick to.”
Slum dwellers were also angry
with the administration and said
^ithaddonehifleto

Marg and the Ring Road.
“My entire house has been
washed away,” said Shushant
who'lived on^the eTsI^nk of

member that about two years
back, when there had been a simi­
lar flood, we had been given food
oa^s andI ^me h moneury

=
vide s~am
for, but since SSSXE
he moved he has met us are policemen, but g
they
not been able to go for WO*JUmesh is a little better off than

metres away from the stagnant water, Umesh
does not want
to move
UVOll uvvu
-----------to one of the camps set up by th
the
administration. If 1 m°ve ym
I°have in my^jhuggi. Besi^yWelJ10

5SES

people start coming back' ne
asks
Due to the close proximity to the
stagnant water and the unhygienic
conditions, several children have
,-^lready faUen Unsaid Badn Na' rain.
’ %•;*
.
“Many children have been
I fr'Vomiting^nd have been runriing

come only to trouble us, saidSnniwas.
.
The
aDoarently do

m.., I,... no
ch°5f\ ODene<i for traffic: Mean^^"Cuna waters con^Jedto recede for the second day
below the danger level mark

resumed on t— Bridge today.

s’1*

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aim

nm*1'****'

,

Developing countrtes^
face shortage of doctors \

tio with one doctor a^t®n?in^®tri7s Nepalhas one doctor for 13,634 peo-

doctor for 18,376 people-

skewed as they do not take into

xs^^-srsss^x
asssa--^
^rTTT^
Life expectancy to Kerab. and S

Unk

demonstratillg the efficacy of

•w rr

X47QV

New Delhi Friday September 26, 1997

* Air ^urcharg. extra ir»ppiir»bie Late City Vol. 7 Issue 267 Pages 18 Rs. 2.Q|

Premier hospitals reject ‘AIDS patient
Staff Reporter
New Delhi
THREE PRESTIGIOUS hospitals
in the Capital did not admit a "se­
rious" patient on Wednesday as
they allegedly took him to be an
HIV case.
According to volunteers of
Sahara, an NGO, the All India
Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Ram Manohar Lohia (RML)
and Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU)
hospitals did not admit Prakash
Chand (38).
The volunteers, who ferried the
patient ail over the city for near-

ly 17 hours (from 6.30 am to 11
pm), alleged that Prakash was
not treated because doctors felt
he was an HIV positive case.
Meville Felhore, who runs the
NGO, alleged that the doctors’ at­
titude was deplorable. "They will
not admit an AIDS case and in case
they do, the patient will be treated
like an untouchable," he said. "At
AIIMS, they will put a placard on
his chest and bed: HIV positive ."
Prakash, with a swollen leg,
was picked up from the Nehru
Stadium flyover. Sahara worker
Cedric Fernandes, a reformed
drug addict from Bombay, said:
"He was in acute pain and we dis-

covered that he was taking drugs
intravenously. The needle had
pierced his vein and the drug was
injected in the tissue beyond it."
Prakash, being a drug addict,
looked a perfect picture of an AIDS
patient "At ARMS, the doctor in the
casualty ward did not bother for a
Doppler test. Then he just walked
away as his shift ended. The new
doctor asked us not to waste any
more time at AIIMS," Melville said.
Cedric added: "The RML Casualty
doctors said Prakash might be suf­
fering from HIV, so they could not
treat him. At the DDU Hospital, doc­
tors claimed they did not have req­
uisite facilities. Finally, we came

back at 11 pm."
Meville said: "The doctor's at­
titude was totally pathetic, bor­
dering on revulsion. A patient
from Manipur, Lal Malsum, was
refused admission in August by
ARMS, Safdarjung and DDU. AIIMS doctors referred him to
Safdarjung, where the doctors
begged us to take him away. At
DDU, the same thing happened."
He added: "A boy, an ad­
vanced case, was bleeding from
mouth, passing stools and uri­
nating, but none cared for for him
in any hospital." Malsum died on
August 17 in ARMS, admitted
there with help from a friend in

9

the World Health Organisation
(WHO).
Sahara workers claimed that
Malsum was kept in a dripping,
isolated ward. "The hospital staff
kept away from him. If they did
enter his room, they maintained
good distance," Elizabeth Felhore
said.
Cedric said even doctors had
misconceptions about HFV posi­
tive patients. "HIV is not half as
infectious as TB or hepatitis.
Hospitals will have to undergo a
metamorphosis in attitude.
Otherwise, people will start drop­
ping dead of AIDS in Delhi with­
in 10 years," Cedric added.

/

Malaria-hit Ghaziabad mayy
succumb
to
succ
By Lalit Kumar
The Times of India News Service

to the dengue-causing aedes mosquito.

tes^, nr RatnBa
Babu,
whoisisalso
alsoin-cnarge
in-chargeuiofu.^
the •malaria
bu, who

r~-•

,

ing agent that ‘,killsKm°s<^^SXri officer Ram Babu taking to Preve^^ffial corporation has plans to

d‘“’srs“ - feswss
the mahria papite at the district 1hospita

UllVlll'-

a source says there were-aboutJO^ia cases' confir
med there in August. But 1he trend seen*
more cases this month (S p
b 18 blood sam

sjngh says the

„tion has already pure..^

and remains activejor a numto^of months/' He expau

-

.ethrine on an "experrmenul•«hasre.
“has fewer side-effects .

L ±
/

Eight more
down with
■ rm dengue
Ax'

been on leave for
nearby, he had be
a month. He fell ill on September
8 and came to Delhi on September
New Delhi
10."
Two outstation cases of dengue
EIGHT FRESH confirmed dengue
cases were reported on Tuesday were admitted to AIIMS. Whereas
one of them Sohan Lal, 22, was a
in different city hospitals.
Reports came in from the All Gaziabad resident and was ad­
I India Institute of Medical Sciences mitted on September 11, anoth­
1 (AIIMS), Ganga Ram Hospital and er patient Ram Dhari, 28, was a
Cheeranjivi Nursing Home near resident of Panipat.
So far 17 confirmed cases of
i Siri Fort. Whereas five patients
dengue
were admitted to various
were residents of Delhi, two were
city hospitals, out of which nine
I from Panipat and Ghaziabad.
I
Four of them were admitted in were residents of Delhi. MCD of­
; AIIMS, three in Ganga Ram hos- ficials said.
Even as fresh cases of dengue
j pital and one in Cheeranjivi
Nursing Home, the Municipal were reported, the MCD officials
Corporation of Delhi (MCD) offi­ on Tuesday morning detected
Aedes mosquitoes breeding in Acials said.
The hospitals where dengue pa­ 1 and C-8 blocks of Keshavpuram.
tients were admitted told the Nimbarv colony near Ashok Vihar
MCD to take preventive measures. and Ganesh Nagar near Tri Nagar
in North-West Delhi.
Last
week.
Municipal
MCD officials said the dengue
patients from Delhi included a Corporation of Delhi (MCD) offi­
' Vikas puri (West Delhi) resident, cials said 14,523 cases of Aedes
Gurvinder Singh, 22, and a breeding was reported in differ­
Mausam Vihar (East Delhi) resi­ ent parts of the city. During this
dent, Arsi Parvin. The two of them period more than 1,00,000 cool­
were admitted to AIIMS. Out of ers were checked.
With fresh cases of Aedes
three Delhi residents, Laxmi
Narayan Gupta, 75, from Rohini breeding coming to light, the
! and Samadevi, 65, who stayed in MCD officials said: "We feel dis­
LNJP Hospital campus, were ad­ heartened that we were not get­
mitted to Ganga Ram Hospjtal. ting full co-operation from the
Delhi resident
public. Despite our repeated pleas
The third, a South
S—2.2-"/
4
from Greater kailash Part I, Kripi house to house distribution of
Chopra. 21. was admitted to handbills and advertisement in ra­
dio, television and newspapers
Cheeranjivi Nursing Home.
Whereas Kripi Chopra was ad­ some people do not seem to take
mitted to a private nursing home, it seriously. If people were con­
her blood test was done at Ganga scious of this problem then Aedes
Ram Hospital which confirmedI breeding would have been much
less." A Keshavpuram resident
dengue.
.About another Delhi residentI challenged the MCD officials to
biia
whu was being
take action when the officials
Sita nam,
Ram, uu,
55, who
treated in Ganga Ram hospital
pointed out that there> was Aedes
theMCI) o'rririais saidthafhe had breeding in his cooler “nd^asked
to remove water from cool.­
contracted the disease in Chamoli him
’
in Uttar Pradesh. Though Sita er. The MCD officials issued chaRam was working in Ganga Ram lan’ to him after removing water
\ hospital as a cook and stayed from the cooler.
------i—

Staff Reporter

t

Death is a re^irring nightmare for these patients
Rw Maniari Mishra

Z| ^uvady out of hand. She is terminally \ment

endocrine surgery SGPGI malignant. However if it happens to

By Manjari Mishra
v
The Times of India News Service

ill with no chance of recovering and Lucknow is that nearly 60 per cent of be cancerous, it is the patient s misthe cases in breast cancer are fouled fortune.
very much aware of her condition.
Even the educated women prefer
LUCKNOW: Revati (not her real
inerc aic
There
are |UU1
four 111WV
more such women up irreparably before they reach exto go to their gynaecologists for any
’name), a painfully shy, skin and.bone waUi for lhe .finai> exit frOm the perts.
, mother of three fromward.
BalliaThey
is not
6 to different
• •
---- breast related problem. There have
may belong
The story is generally the same been instances where even these
‘ very articulate. She had a small lump places and families or may have difdif­
in the breast, she explains in halting ferent case histories
but one thing with allittle variation. According to rprofessionals have missed a small le1.1.
Bhojpuri, which grew worse with runs common, they all are the victims Dr Sanjeev Mishra the pool otticer SjOn due to a perfunctory examinatime. Finally she was taken to Kanpur of either wrong diagnosis, wrong surgery KGMC, delay in disclosure to tion or have failed to distinguish bewhere a surgeon operated upon it as- treatment or incomplete surgeries.
the family due to inhibition or indif tween a benign or malignant. This,
ference; delayed visit to the local says Dr I.D. Sharma, professor of on
' suring a full and speedy recovery.
In
two former
cases, the doctor d°ctor. or in the villages to those cology in KGMC, is an expert job best
1
Revati is back in lhe hospital, a
----the
-------;
; year later, this lime lhe cancer ward —
on duty explained, the surgeons did practjsing Ayurveda, unani or homo- left to an expert.
.
------------------ ----. ----------------- .—U.U,..
in the
KGMC,
Lucknow
and probably not remove the malignant nodes in eOpalhy with or without degrees and
The treatment of breast cancer is a
axila, and the third obviously fell fjnajjy the operation performed by multi-disciplinary process comprisbreathing her last.
So is Shyama, from Deoria, semi prey to a unscrupulous homoeopath,
eXpert of the area who may not jing
ng a judicious mix of surgery cheliterate and slightly more vocal who
However, they are doomed to suf have a cjue about the complication of motherapy radiotherapy and immufollowed the doctors instructions to fer a death sentence pronounced not a breast cancer or modified radical notherapy says Dr Arun Chaturvedi
the T right from a hasty mastectomy by destiny but by doctors, who would mastectomy.
associate professor KGMC.
There have, been insunces^f
clearly perplexed and needless to say geons accountability under the Con- quakes jarrah> or1^cruPn(*er
£erts (0 deal withYthe cases. A danger.

I

WSela iron, Gonda preferred
sweet pills to surgery and relied on
the neighbourhood homoeopath till
her family realised things were al

w hour «

-=ntndeedasdre^

The startling fact corroborated by send them for h,^°P^ knoWiedee registered a rise of three to five per
the oncology division (the only one amination, safe jn the
g
g
P y
in the state) of KGMC and the depart- that 80 per cent of growth may not be cent in the past tew years.

J

T *

News3

kXPRESSNewsHne
NEW DELHI ■ SATURDAY ■ SEFI EMBER 20, 1997

F Where drinking water conies mixed with sewage
%■■■■■■>■

/

J

J
JX

In one ofDDAs
oldest colonies,
ageing pipelines
and residential
boosters keep the
poison flowing
KOTA NEEUMA
NEW DELHI, SEPT 19

T TAVE tea, 1 don’t think 1
I I should offer you water*
JL -*_says a housewife in
Mayur Vihar Phase-1. “That is
because the drinking water stinks
zl
ofsewage.
sewage. Even
Even tboiling it does
io
of
■ -t:
not help.”
\
This shpdting
ig fact, which is
: \\ now ap^ecepted
p of living in
:pted part

one of
.. the
. oldest colonies of the
Delhi Development Authority
(DDA), is due to leakage from
drinking water lines which mix
with the equally leaky sewage
pipes and contaminate the
supply.
“We moved into the house in
1977. And since then we have had
this problem. Now even the
promises of civic authorities that
thingswill improve, does not con­
vince us,” says Jagdish Nanda, a
resident of Pocket 2.
Predictably, that is what the
Delhi Water Supply and Sewage
Disposal officials had to say when
the complaint was referred to
them. “It is a matter of another
two months,” says a senior official
of the area.
According to him, the solution
lies in diverting the sewage load
from the Chilla Chdwk pump
house which serves’the entire

"O

n

_

,u„_;___htin5<te.ch.
As the problem has now been not only suck water but also other on themamsupp
area. A proposal was floated for a the project was caught. m a^echSnpwidi from the neighbouring
new pump house at Kalyan Pun. meal wrangk w.th the Delh.
.j ^as. In some cases, as they are
but it did not take off because Vidyut Board.
hewn functioning in thenext in close proximity to sewage fines,

neighbourhood and has limited
capacity, leading to —
serious
lupavuj,
------ S
sewage clogging problems in die

two months.
“And when we divert the
sewage, we shall also lay the new
sewer lines. That should take care
of the leakage which is leading to
uuu,” says^an ™
the contamination,
offi­
cial with the Sewage
S
„ Disposal
~ .
Mi
Undertaking.
..6-----TV
The process of this dangerous
y "v
R
contamination is very simple. The
pipes laid for water supply and
sewage have a life of 15 years on
the outside.
Then they start corroding,
leaking and degenerating under­
ground. Most lines in Mayur Vihar were laid more than 20 years
ago, the reason why they are in a
bad state.
“When on such dilated pipes
:_________ —- ---------- -J
the residents fix boosters, they
UNCLOG THOSE HOLES: Workers flush out blocked manholes^iyMayur Vihar. Photo byRENUKA PURI
---------------------------- ,

-I1JML lltiff-------- F

Ml

F1

iupply line. But no
one actually follows the rules
here,”he says.
Another major problem with
the colony was that of bad main­
tenance
of local parks.
reason for the contamination,”
Says Nanda: “After repeated
explains an official.
Another ICOXlll
reason for
the prob- requests,
AllOlilCl
till urv
--------- - they
J are beginmng
~
I ~n to
..
_to .i
____
cc_:_i is
ki.iid
lem, according
the
official,
build aa hmindary
boundary tn
to the
the narks.
parks. BeBefore
that,
cattle
from
the
neighbecause the residents have in- — •-*
bouring
resettlement
colonies
stafied cheap service lines from
used to come and graze here.
the main line to their houses.
The residents, naturally, do There was no question of even
uoing for a stroll
in therparks, fornui buy
uuy that.
uiai. Aie
ruv the civic agen....
not
cies trying to tell us that their con- get letting children play among
tractors, after cornering their the cattle.”
share of
of the
the moolah,
moolah, do
do aa better
better
While it has been about 20
share
iob than what we do for
>r our own years since the colony was set up,
Ihomes?....” asks
, Ajay Mehta, an­ there is still no public transport
service to the area.
other resident.
Though the buses reach till
Authorities also reprimand
resiuems for
un putting booster Kotla behind the colony no bus,is
residents
pumps on the lines.
headed exclusively for Pockets 1
“If a booster has to be set up, it and II forcing the residents to
bui
must be done on a tank and not walk close to 2 km to catch a buj.

Dengue is
back; two
cases surface
- >.

'

•

challan to the Medical
Suprintendent of St Stephen's
and similar action would be,tak­
New Delhi
______________________ ___en _o
____
the Medical
against
DENGUE FEVER has waged » Suprintenden.
is
confirmed
and
the residential
comeback in the Capital with two
1 cases being reported in quick suc- address of the patient falls under
MCD
jurisdiction.
1 cession. This, despite a commit­
Incidentally, Delhi Health
ted and a sustained awareness
campaign by experts and civic Minister Harsh Vardhan and
Principal Secretary (Medical)
bodies.
Anu Sethi
semi (27).J a
a resident, of Ramesh Chandra did not turn up
Anil
• • • Garden,
’-----was
’“s admitted to at a dengue-awarness function orDilshad
ttTst
Stephen's
on
“ Uh
the St Stephen's hoepit.l
hospital on
September 4. The second patient.
Delhi
Medical
Association.
Vyay Kumar (17) of Tilak Nagar.
Recently, three dengue cases
was brought to AIIMS on
were reported at Jaipur Golden
September 8.
In both cases dengue has been Hospital. Although the patients
were from Panipat.
confirmed. While
they created a
the
National
scare in the Capital
Institute
of
While the Delhi ad­
Communicable
ministration and
Diseases (N1CD)
the civic authorities
said Sethi was in­
have been claiming
deed a dengue pa­
that they have tak­
tient, Dr Wali of the
en adequate steps
Department
of
to prevent dengue
Medicine. AIIMS,
this year, they nev­
has said the same
er ruled out the
for Vyay Kumar.
possibility of an
However,
outbreak neverthe­
Municipal Health
less..
Officer (MHO) Dr
The
Delhi
Devraj maintained
Government has
that the disease had
stepped up the
not emanated in the
dengue-prevention
Capital, saying:
campaign by con­
'Sethi came from
ducting door-toJaipur
on NEW DELHI: Those who door checks in. all
do
not
maintain
their
September 3 and
residential apd
was admitted to the. desert coolers can
commercial areas
hospital the very expect to find them­
to
eliminate
selves
in
the
‘
cooler',
next day. He did not
sources congenial
contract dengue in Union Health Minister
to the breeding of
Renuka
Chaudhary
Delhi as he spends
ie>nausthe dengue-oausmost of his time in said here on
Wednesday.
Jaipur.'
mosquito.
As part of a drive to
The MHO, how­
■Last year the
ever, pleaded igno­ check the spread of
Capital reported
dengue
and
other
mos
­
rance about the AI­
over 400 dengue
IMS case. 'We have quito-borne diseases,
deaths and over
imprisonment
of
up
to
not been officially
10,000 suspected
informed by .AIIMS. six months has been
If it was a con­ prescribed for those
The Aedes Egypti
owning
coolers
with
firmed case, AIIMS
mosquito is also
should have in­ stagnant water, capable
called the Tiger
formed the MCD. 1 of breeding the vector,
Mosquito because
have asked my offi­ she said.
of the black and
After reviewing the
cials to look into
white zebra-llke
dengue
and
malaria
sit
­
the matter. The
stripes on its body.
MCD will get a re­ uation in the Capital, Ms The
mosquito
Chaudhary
said
there
port on Thursday.'
breeds only in fresh
Dr Devraj said was no cause for panic.
water and is large­
the zonal MCD of­
UM ly found in coolers.
fice had Issued a

Staff Fl9port9r

Keep coolers
dry or
face jail

________________

Tt

Scourge Strikes'.
^Developing World
\ /aA CA

By KALPANA JAIN

uiu>» continues to
— mai town in Thailand witnessed an
e 'T'HE AIDS] pendulum
despair in the de- abandoning of such babies. Whether
d JL swing between ('‘ , 1.. /...
in the de­ infected adults should be told to give
d veloping world and hope
ipensive drugs
---T up
. having children has been the sube veloped. New and exp.:.:?.:
_
i-i. countries, iont
r\f
promise
a
cure
in
the
rich
jecl
ofcomp
someripbatp.s.
debates.
e
In
in developing counBut for about 30 developing counI hospitals
'
r
3
tries, ominous signs are beginning to hies, parents are beginning to come
face to face ’with the reality of find­
)f eTnerge as more children fall a prey ing their children
infected through
a to AIDS.
AIDS is particularly reversing the blood. For thalassemic and haemoEains“made3n ’the health care of philiac patients, parents are finding
’ ■’
---------women and• children
in --these
coun­. they have to make a painful decision:
■ Z
1 tranfusions are essential for the surn- tries. The National AIDS Control
Organisation in India now considers vival of the children. But with each
transfusion, the risk of getting in­
t infected children as a group large
1
enough to be defined as a separate fected with the AIDS virus goes up.
On most vital issues of public
category. With only limited surveillance to go"by India already has four health. India’s report card is already
°
<
5 U
_______
A TT^Q rnmAC with itQ
per cent^of"the worlS's AIDS cases a disgrace. And AIDS
comes with its
below the age of 18.
special problems: In the rudimentary
health care system at several places,
a ttap

Fate of Children

gjgMg-nw-b.-•

It means having to cope with a lion through blood is common.
There
algrowing population of infected and
----- -are enough examples
.
dying children. Are we as a society ready of young thalassemic and Mac
nae-­
patients being denied ”adready to face it? With few resources, mophiliac
-----------and even feiver organisations
i_._'
‘
. willing
’’"r mission to hospitals after they have
acquired
HIV
as a result of receiving
to take the emotional strain of han­
dling an issue as complex as this, infected blood. There are examples
refusing
realistic answers may not be avail- of
— orphanages
-F—r to take HIVable. But solutions have to be found, positive children or childrenjM. such
especially keeping in mind the indi- parents. Therej are also examples of
HIV-positive mothers being thrown
vidual needs of countries.
Already, in developed economies, out with their children from their
where the infection is now seen as homes.
curable, the
debates <uv
are getting
curauic,
ujc
ucuai&a
fewer. For developing nations, such Support by Stems
as India, these issues are just about
coming up: A large number of chilIt is time then to take a look at curdren will soon have infected parents rent national policies in the context
mothers who will not be able to of child rights and set an agenda for
’ ’
------- ~'~Z out
—* of
- provide care and fathers who may be tackling problems
emerging
. thrown out of jobs or simply be un- HIV
UT'7 infection: For instance, critical
rntiral
wvia.
issues whether HIV-infected mothers
; auic
able iv
to work.
What will be the fate of such chil- should be allowed to breastfeed their
dren? As family incomes fall and infants need to be discussed. Trans­
medical expenses go up, these chil­ mission of the infection through
dren may be forced to join the exist- breastmilk
----------- -is a reality
. and infants
ing child labour force. Even if social who have escaped getting HIV from
support is available, schools may not ttheir
— mothers during birth should be
„r. protected.The
r
' ~j use of drugs in
be willing to take them in once the kept
HIV-status of their parents is re- minimising the risk of
. transmission
■ vealed to the community. And the also needs to be examined,
It would
pointless
to depend
on
subsequent trauma may wreck these
,J be 7''
“*’
.
children as they see their parents die the existing health care facilipes tor
the care ofsuch children. Social sup­
a painful and horrible death.
Nowhere has this been more ap­ port systems need to be built and
cm than
umui in
«• sub-Saharan
owe.
parent
Africa home care encouraged. But most of
whfch hafhad to face'the brunt of the all, society itself has to be sensitised
epidemic so far. For example, or- towards accepting these children. No
phaned children suffered even if they support system will be able to work
r
had grandparents
to look
leek after
zft" them if HIV-positive face discrimination in
due to the crushing poverty that came their surroundings.
on the family after losing breadThe Indian government has already
bread­
winners. Such children were re­ been several steps behind the epi­
moved from school and were com­ demic, when it should have been
e.
racing
along:
pelled to earn a living.
^Girls
CLL faced’ a worse future. They Planning begins
invariably suffered nutritionally, only when the
Some were subjected to sexual abuse, problem
has
And a preference for extremely taken root. And
young girls either in marriage or in for AIDS,, there
~
th?"there
*1'”is
i the
is no time to lose
the flesh
trade grew. Then
issue of those children who have in waiting fur^been infected in the womb. Chiang- ther.

I

Fungus in sealed drug bottles

nel 100
luu contaminated supply of
________________________---------------- -------------------------------------- lier
Broncare syrup were provided by
Vlshwas Kumar___
the concerned dispensary. The
bottles were withdrawn from the
New Delhi
store for some time but have reap­
peared after a few months.
THE DISPENSARIES of the Central
Dr Pasha said. "We had re­
Government Health Scheme
ceived similar complaints of con(CGHS). Unani wing, are stocked
I laminated Broncare medicines in
with contaminated drugs.
I January. 1997 and the entire
Two samples of contaminated
stock of the medicine was sent
drugs of a particular brand was
back to the store. But again, the
.....
brought to the office of The
Unani drug store has started
Pioneer by a patient. The patient
I sending the drug."
w
had got the medicine firom the
He added. 1 cannot say how
CGHS Unani dispensaries at
drugs from the same laboratories ,
Sarojini Nagar behind the main
are sent to the dispensaries de­
post-office.
spite similar complaints in
These two bottles, one of
January. We have asked the pa­
Broncare syrup and the other
tients to give a written complaint
I
Musafil-i-azam, have a thick mass
so that 1 can take the matter to the
of fungus floating inside. The
higher authorities."
fungus can be clearly seen and
However, Dr Jawahar Lal. inwas noticed by the patient whom
charge of CGHS drug stores said,
the sealed bottles were brought
' Till date we haven't received any
bottles bought at the-CGHS dispensaries
home from the dispensary.
written complaint about the con­
The
Several patients have com- a complaint from the patients that tients.
taminated Unani medicines.
ned of contaminated drugs be­
The Broncare syrup bottle,
Sources said that the Maxo lab­
Broncare syrup is contaminated
Maxo
by
ing given by the "CGHS dispen­ with fungus and we have checked manufactured
oratories private limited earlier
limited
at
saries. Despite earlier protests the stores and found contaminat­ Laboratories private
used to make Ayurvedic medi­
from medical officers, drugs be­ ed bottles" .said Dr Pasha, in- Najafgarh, Delhi is marked for cines. But they were blacklisted by
. 1 he CGHS Ayurvedic authorities on
longing to a particular laborato­ charge of CGHS Unani dispensary CGHS supply, not to be soldr.The
ry are being supplied again, in Sarojini Nagar, showing the manufacturing date on the bottle similar charges and started man­
putting the lives of patients in sample of bottles with floating fun­ is March. 1996.
ufacturing drugs for CGHS Unani.
Patients have alleged that eargreat danger.
. t
gus inside it returned by the pa­
"Today only we have received

si

■

«■'

. <■'

• < ”

BBSS

I

L

■|

J

______________

'Ir’oor sanitation'w<\
blamed for spread
of malaria in Goa
PANAJI: Poor sanitation, unscienti­
fic building and
ity, water-logging and migrant I
b£ir are cited as the four major cau­
ses, in the official circles, for the
spreading of malaria that has caused
more than 40 deaths in Goa during

sxsxsa’aK

1 pital, the apex institution are grap
pling with the problem to contam the
disease. The multiplicity of agencies
created by the state goyennnent
without fixing responsibdlhes for
scientific planning, de™'“P”e"t’
I drainage, sewerage have further ag
I gravated the problem in Panaji, Ma
pusa, Vasco-da-Gama, Margao and
I severftl coastfil belts.
I
The health department has now in­
troduced a card system to ascertain
the magnitude of the problem among
I the migrant construction labour who
I are listed permanent ‘positive
I cases.
Open water tanks, scrap dealers,
I onen drainage system and garbage
hwps are said to be ideal breadu^
I grounds for malaria and other disea

L ses.fuw

S

2
A

Incidence of menta
illness on the rise '
By Our Staff Reporter

4

-

CHENNAI. Sept. 9?
Incidence of mental illness appears to be on
the rise going by the Increasing number of out­
patients seeking treatment at the out-patients
department of the Institute of Mental Health,
Kilpauk, says its director. Dr. V. S. P. Baniyam.
The institute was receiving about
times
the number of patients it had received in the
sixties, he said. While about 400 to 450 ‘repeat’
cases visited the out-patient department for fol­
low up treatment and to procure drugs, at least
40 to 50 new cases arrived at the institute, he
said.
It was not possible to register all patients on
the day they arrive as the process of interview­
ing patients took a long time. Hence, the in­
stitute was able to examine only about 25
patients on an average, on a "first come first
served" basis. For the remaining, emergency
line of treatment was rendered if required and
they were directed to come the next day.
Growing awareness might be responsible to a
certain extent for the increase in arrivals at the
institute, Dr. Bashyam told presspersons here
today. But, stress and depression-related disor­
ders which have been increasing in the rapidly
changing industrial society could also be re­
sponsible for the increasing incidence, he said.
In the face of growing demand for quality
treatment, professionals in the field and con­
cerned individuals have set up a trust, the IN­
TERACTION (Institute of Mental Health Trust
for Education, Research, Care and Rehabilita­
tion of the Mentally Ill) trust. The trust presi­
dent, Mr. T. T. Vasu said that the trust was in the
process of building a half- way home, family
therapy unit and a research and rehabilitation
centre. The State Government had already given
25 grounds for construction of a two- storey
building to house the projects. Work on the
ground floor was almost complete and the trust
was in the process of raising funds for the re­
minder of the project.
Dr. N. Mathrubootham, treasurer of the trust,
said that the trust would also take up awareness
campaigns and complement the district mental
health programme.

So, Ms Chffudhury, y u’ft dead wr< ng
..
-4.:h
»ik/^ffpctive.in
Health
Min-Health Min­
be equaUy India.
effective
in India,
rreatment me one ai Si and affected at least 10,000 others, still
arrived here for treatment,
th^oqe
at
St
istry
officials
said
.
mthorities had argued, fresh in people’s minds, the fresh spate of
“One man’s carelessness could be the
LUtnontie
js
to crea(e panic and tear
'Stephen s, the au
------- .
-g ,
had recently come from Rajasthan and, about the viral ailment among the pubhe. cause for another’s dengue or malaria”,
therefore, could not be labelled as Delhi s Wall, however, assured that the above the Minister stated, adding that a little bit
of caution on the part of the public could i
patient.
p
t ,
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
just be sporadic cases.
,
But yet another case of suspected might
reduce incidents of disease.
Though there are four strains ot sharply
. new DELHI, SEPT 10
Following a review of the dengue and
---- dengue reported from North Delhi s dengue virus, which is spread by the/ledes
th/Capital Tirath Ram Shah Hospital has further Agypti mosquitoes from the healthy or af­ malaria situation in Delhi, Haryana, Ut­
DENGUE has struck
case of this d^ the ^ent Go= fected human hosts to other healthy per­ tar Pradesh and Rajasthan yesterday, an
again. The 1,*-.-------dreaded viral disease was today reported and dengue prevention campaigns were sons, Dengue-II is the most dreaded of
The first confirmed case was
from the AU India Institute of Medical bearing fruit and there was no chance of them all since it was found to have caused
Sciences (AIIMS), while the conclusive
the maximum casualties last year.
reported from AIIMS, while
disease striking again.
According to Wali, the treatment of
diagnosis on another patient admitted theWith
memories of last year s dengue dengue patients is generally symptomatic,
the conclusive diagnosis on
with similar symptoms is still awaited.
epidemic, which claimed around 375 lives
that is to control the
Ironically, the report came at a time
fever and replenish body another patient admitted with
when the Union Minister of State for
fluids in case of shock
Health, Renuka Chaudhury, was busy
similar symptoms is still
and blood in case of
claiming at a press conference that not a
awaited
haemonhage. While the
single confirmed case of dengue fever had
dengue shock syndrome
so far originated from the Capital.
Seventeen-year-old Vijay Kumar, an
duced^Tood pressure, ‘Action Plan’ for vector-borne disease
electrician from Mahavir Nagar in Tilak
■ FT ABORATE vector control measures and crores of
prevention has been mooted.
Nagar, was admitted at the premier insti­
rupees spent on creating awareness aixAii die prevention of increased heart and
The neighbouring states have been di­
tute on Monday with high fever and other
dengue seem to have come a cropper, with the Capital renew- pulse rate and reduced rected to report all cases of dengue which
urine
output,
dengue
clinical symptoms of dengue. According
m8 M^onfe AeuS^tpdStote governments and the local haemorrhagic fever ac­ are referred to Delhi hospitals for treat­
to the doctors attending to him, the pa­
ment. The measure is to pinpoint areas of
tient also vomited blood, which strength­
civic bodies have strongly maintained that the disuse was as companies internal or dengue density and enable the health ser­
ened the suspicion of his suffering from
good as eradicated as their efforts were bearing fruits. The external bleeding.
dengue haemorrhagic fever.
Earlier, Union Min­ vices to crackdown with prevention j
fresh
cases
of
dengue
seem
to
prove
otherwise.
efforts.
“His blood sample was subsequently
Dr Pradeep Seth, head of the microbiology department at ister of State for Health
Denying reports of a shortage ot
Renuka
Chaudhary
ansent for the serological testmg, which con­
AIIMS however, feels that the disease has already become
blood
platelets in the blood banks, the
firmed the presence of antibodies against
endemic and its vecurrence can not be totally avoided, since ’ nounced at the press Minister said transfusion of blood
conference
that
“
strin-----.
the dengue virus,” said Jyoti Prakash
’ .' - , -j sever­
the desiccated eggs of aedes lying dormant for the entire season gent action, including platelets was required only^rnthe
Wali, head of the Department of Medi­
couldbeoneof the reservoirs,
est of dengue cases: She said doctors had
cine at AIIMS, under whose care the pa­
“The Government can initiate steps to control the breed­ imprisonment” were on been sensitised on this issue and urged
the anvil for Delhi resi­
tients are being treated.
ing ofAedes A&pti
But it cannot enter each and
The other 30-year-old patient is also
dents who did not keep not to create a scare by ordering people
everv household and physically remove the breeding sources,
to fetch platelets at the first signs of the
presenting the symptoms of the dengue
he argues, adding that theWquitoes bred in clean water and their homes and sur­ disease.
haemonhagic fever (DHF), though Wall
bit during the daytime. The surveillance, he feels, needs to be roundings clean and free
The Health Ministry also plans to go
from stagnant water.
today claimed the diagnosis had not yet
strengthenedsothatthesituationdoesn’tgooutofhands.
ahead
with its programme of resorting to
Such strict action had
been confirmed.
The facilities for a free serological test are available.be­
“fogging” different parts of the Capital
been
successfully
imple
­
The above cases come close on the
sides the NICD, at AIIMS, Maulana Azad Medical College
with anti-mosquito chemical sprays de­
heels of four other confirmed cases of
and GTB Hospital, while private laboratories charge upto Rs mented in dengue and spite objections from some quarters that it
malaria
prone
countries
dengue fever — three of whom were re­
750 for each test. And the plasma separators are aJ^cvaflable
could increase the resistance of mosqui­
ported from Jaipur Golden Hospital at
at the hospitals, though the doctors maintain that platelets are like Malaysia and Singa­ toes to such pesticides and adversely af­
Rohini and the fourth from St. Stephen’s
pore and there was no
not necessary in 90 per cent of the cases.
Hospital. Though the Rohini patients
reason why it could not fect the health of residents.
Vx\hailed from Panipat in Haryana and had

<

Dengue strikes the
Capital again

^7

Govt steps come a
cropper

f

2

ommunity involvement cruc
to the success of health plans'Wx^
ByR“P®C!,.lna’
a low endemic, rural area of the Phi- group discussions wid^ffectedvilte
The Times of India News Service lippines evoked a similar initial re- gers, trying
undefttand~why
they
tryingto
----------„.,7 „
IV?
jMUMBAl: The recent international sponse because malaria control was continue this tradition, what they
qponference on parasitic diseases in low in priority, says Allen Saul of the know about the risk and how they
Hyderabad has ’highlighted several Queensland institute of Medical Re- viewthe cure. "The health education
search, (Australia),
(Australia), which
which supports
supports system
x
o to be search,
technologies
that are rproving
system isis coming
coming from
from them,
them,”” says
says
in malaria control, ----------but Asian the project. The community had Professor Singhasivanon.
aj.useful
.
ntjnd African experience shows that greater concern about acute respirartnany programmes fall flat in the ab- tory infections, diarrhoea, trauma acThe focus groups discussions re
i^ence of health education efforts and cidents, heart, cancer and other pro- vealed subtle nuances in the knowl
involvement of the community.
blems. They had difficulty in under- edge of the villagers. They knew that
h*’ The vital role of sociologists, an standing the concept of transmis eating raw fish could cause illness,
sion, connecting the malarial para- and they knew that drugs provide 100
^ttiropologists and public health ex site to the mosquito and man.
per cent cure rates. The public health
‘pens in communicating public mes
The
however received messages
°sages, is increasingly recognised in
. *programme
.
. thus began
-. to emphasise
,!the successfuFTmpieme^^
successful implementation of widespread response when villagers that no drug provides a total cure,
programmes.
found that their fevers were being especially when there is a delay in
quickly treated and they were cured, treatment. If the worms increase,
vd Up to 80 per cent of the world’s They realised that the programme there are greater chances of getting
malaria burden is borne by Africa, was
,
- - they no longer hepatitis and of developing liver can
sustainable and
with children
suffering
the worst im- l*«v*
ihad iv
...
cer. Very young
people are dying
to put up with
malaria. They
be —
i
mill maiaiia.
liivyuv
j***---o r
i*pact ol morbidity and mortality. Ac- came receptive to house spraying, from this problem.
ncording to W. Kilama, director-gen use of bed nets and protection of wa
“Despite this effort, only 50 per
Ireral of Tanzania’s National Institute ter sources. Decline in malaria inci­
bbf Medical Research, rural Africans dence has attracted m>
an wwi.
economic cent are affected enough to give up
diave lived with malaria for so long boom to this area. Surroundingj com eating raw fish. The most important
that they have come to accept recur­ munities are now taking their own in­ programme now is educating chil­
ring fever as a part of their lives.
itiative without waiting for interven dren in the schools. Children are be
ginning to educate their parents. We
For many in the community, con- tion fr°m the health department.
have also had some measure of sue
Volling malaria is not a priority. Ev­
“When people get better immedi- cess in HIV/AIDS prevention, which
eryone however, is bothered by the ately, there is tremendous reinforce- has now peaked in Thailand, and
Mosquito nuisance which disturbs ment for the programme. Patients reached a point of stabilisation. Our
rtheir sleep. Thus, while promoting and volunteer field workers feel bet- prevention efforts have focussed
on
zthe use of bed nets impregnated with ter about it. The sooner you treat a strategies such as peer education and
ipyrethroid insecticide, the
„ govern-, person, the sooner you break the cy- involving monks who command re­
Ement’s public messat
” of sound- cle of transmission," says Mr. Saul.
ige talks
r-------' who
‘ are very
spect
amongst a people
tifcleep without buzzing mosquitoes,
Thailand
is
investing
heavily
in
re
rell
B
lous
,
says
Professor
Singhasiva
■rather than emphasising malaria.
search on how people can be made to non
Impregnated bed nets have understand prevention and treat­
The Hyderabad conference saw
i
PrOteCti°n rang*n8.fr°m
ment of disease. University research the presence of several groups inter
bito 65 per cent in countries like Ken
ir
helping the government to know
ested All
in 1111^11141
international
in
i
r*1
rx
o*
CdlCU
A Ml 141 Anetworking
It. I WUllklUK 1AA
iiya, Ghana and Gambia, says World
.Health Organisation representative gha^JanonjTom thedeparunfntof de.veloPment of research, sharing of
information and material support
, J Cattani.
tropical medicine, Mahidol Universi- ‘Rotary against malaria,’ for instance,
Successful use of tools is vitally ty’ Bangkok.
is an initiative emerging from Rotary
J connected to strategies of “social
Liver fluke, for instance, is a wide­ Clubs in Australia and the Pacific,
'marketing"
aimed at the communi­ spread
problem in rural Thailand,.....................
who
are seeking
to give material supr
,
r
r
-...................
-...............................
ty s acceptance of a technology, and because of the traditional practise of port to community education efforts !
building upon their understanding eating raw fish. How to persuade vil through local Rotary Clubs. The Ma
irpf
nf how
hnw it can
ran be relevant. “Techno- lagers to give up this habit has been a laria Foundation, based in the U.S., is
. xrats can come ujip with technologies severe challenge, and answers have working to support development of
:}Dut you need sociocrats
to much
push that nol Come from policy makers sitting research and dissemination of infor
rinrrars tn
technology,” says Professor Ki lama. in air conditioned rooms.
mation on malaria with developing
pilot project to control malaria in
Researchers have held focus countries.

\\

SmithKline Enters Genetic Diagnostics
Joint Venture With Incyte Bolsters a Promising but Troubled Industry

diseases ranging from cancer to Alzheimer’s
By Stephen D. Moore
disease and schizophrenia.
Special to The Wall Street Journal
In late May, Roche Holding offered $11
Smith
The promising area of genetic diagnos­
billion to acquire Germany’s Boehringer
tics has in recent years suffered from slug­
Mannheim Group and become the world’s
gish growth and overcapacity, sparking the
No. 1 diagnostics company. The transaction
withdrawal or drastic retrenchment from
remains subject to regulatory approval in
the industry by companies such as Eastman
the U.S. - but once the Federal Trade Com­
Xodak
Co., Hoechst
SA.
mission gives its approval, Roche officials
Udh VAX.,
aawvMo*. AG and Sanofi
------ - --------I'
But several big drug companies, such as
plan an aggressive investment binge to
td and Abbott Laborato- I 40
Roche uAirline
Holding tLtd.
speed development of new genetic tests.
ries, have gambled on the promise, betting
Abbott Laboratories, deposed by Roche
on a technology-driven revival of the eso­
as industry leader, responded six weeks ago
by teaming up with Paris-based gene re­
teric industry. This week, SmithKline
>0
search specialist Genset SA to develop test
Beecham PLC tossed in its chips.
SmithKline said it is forging a joint ven­
kits based on genes that play key roles m the
ture, dubbed Diadexus, with U.S. biotech star
way patients respond to prescription drugs.
Incyte Pharmaceuticals Inc. The venture will
By weeding out the relatively high propor­
inherit access to two of the world’s biggest
tion of patients who won’t respond to a drug
private libraries of genetic data — plus other
before therapy begins, such tests would save
technologies contributed by each parent in
health-care systems huge sums, analysts
exchange for a 50% stake. That dowry in­
George Poste, SmithKline’s chief science say. Such tests also could reduce the cost
___ _ rights to five diagnostic and technology officer— who
'-'i also
beenhas
_ pharmaceutical giants to
cludes marketing
and time it _takes
tests, in the areas of cancer and bone disease, nameTDiadexus'* chairman, acknowledged develop new drugs by reducing frequency of
developed by SmithKline and now at ad­ that the venture plans to recruit a third part- side effects the main reasons drugs flop in
vanced
stages ui
of uuiuvax
clinical validation.
icea siages
vaxiuc*viwi..
ner with pproven
r0Ven producuun
production prowess. lie
He said clinical testing.
. a
During the
neeotiatiOns ax
arev under way
potential
Like auuvll
Abbott and Genset, Diadexus
«•— venture
------------- ’s first few -years,
. . its
iicgUllcLiiviio
»• j with
— *•
jljiivc
---------•plans
x____ :n
tn nhvRirianS
...
.
_J
tests
will be made^ nirniloKlo
availablecandidates,
but he declined
to identify thorn
them. t0 hunt for genes that detennine how people
primarily through SmithKline’s clinical labIronically, SmithKline raced to the van- respond to drugs —■ or don’t respond, in the
oratories
division.
’s unit, a lead- eUard of genetic research through a previ- case of almos?50% of patients who receive
L/l
Ct
w *•**%*••• SmithKline
--- ------. ,lab network X.
artnership with
ing
in the U.S., Hoc
has ctrucrcriPrt
struggled ous ppartnership
with Human
Human Genome
Genome SclSci- certain expensive treatments for hypertenwith anaemic sales in recent years and ences Inc.,
x-another
------------U.S. biotech highflier
. or
diseases. At the same time, Diclearly needs a transfusion of the kind ot that is Incyte’s archrival. Diadexus will be adexus will* attack two vexing medical rid­
patented, high-margin tests Diadexus has o^iged to’pay an extra royalty to Human dles: the spread of antibiotic-resistant
aCi up
uF to
w deliver.
Genome Sciences on eventual sales of di- strains of bacteria - and cancer.
been set
Legal woes also have hammered Smith- agTl0Stic tests based on genes fished out oi
SmithKline is one of the world’s biggest
Kline In
in recent years - and continued last
company’s huge database. Dr. Poste producers of antibiotics - but Dr. Poste
month when the clinical labs division was a]S0 pledged that fire walls^womd be in­ frets about ‘‘a window of
yulnerabuity
sued by 37 major health insurers, which are stalled to prevent leakage of the biotecn n- between the years 2ooo and 2005 when resisals’ secrets.
... ...
accusing the company of violating federal Vvals
tant organisms wiii
will be picvaicinuui
prevalent but new —
anracketeering laws in the U.S. and overD
r. Poste has
always
classes» will stili not be available,
Dr.
---------- *prethetedrthat^the
charging them by hundreds of millions of earliest,
earliest, major
major commercial
commercial application
application ..01 During
. that period, he expects oa rot1irn
return <«tn
to
dollars since 1989. The
suit came six
months genetic
aoll.r,
Tl. salt
sj raw
gmtieresearch
rarad.would come in diagna Ucs.
the [days before! penicillin when much of in­
after SmithKline agreed to pay $325 million To that end, he secured nghts to dia^iosuc
fection control had to be based upon very
stringent public health measures - vigi­
volvtog6 Medicare’'and”other government the companies' original 1993 pact.
.
Diagnostics is an $18 billion-a-year global lance in mapping the spread of infection and
health-insurance programmes in the U.S.
of carrier status.”
industry,
and its proponents are betting on a identification
However, along with formidable scien­
Such measures would require rapid diag­
tific hurdles, Diadexus faces tricky manage­ revival fuelled by the $3 billion Human nosis of infections - and identification of re­
ment challenges as a result of its mixed her­ Genome Project and other international ef­ sistant bacteria strains before treatment be­
itage. Though SmithKline provides lab ser­ forts to unravel the structure of human DNA. gins. Neither is possible today - but Smithvices, it hasn’t previously ventured into By applying genetic data, scientists believe Kline scientists have some promising leads.
they can uncover the underlying causes of
making diagnostic test kits.

Wa

I 50

g

I

I

°

••

'ii

—Alli

—.

!

______z_________________________________________________ ______________ _____________ ________ ________________ _ _ _ ______________________________________

150 prisoners, many diseases daily
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, SEPT 6
~~T -I.
'
«

THE Leila Seth
Committee report on
the death of biscuit
baron Rajan Pillai,
which was tabled in
the Assembly in the recent session, seeks inspiration from
last year’s K.IC Jain panel report, which is yet to see the
light of day.
Set up with the idea of ‘Strengthening the medical fa­
cilities at Tihar jail’, the Leila Seth Committee says it
should be implemented on an urgent basis and not meet
the fate of most committees.
The Jain report is a chronicle of the basics that are sadly
missing inside Tihar, a jail where yearly 60,000 prisoners
are brought in every year. The report says: ‘At present, in­
vestigative facilities including laboratory and radiological
diagnosis are either non-existent or only a skeleton service
\\ is in operation,” which is important, as the report notes, be\ \ause not only are most of the inmates from the lower

TIHAR MIL SUICIDE

FOLLOWUP^

strata of society but also because communicabte diseases clinical services including investigation services....”
should be identified quickly.
On sudden illnesses, the report notes: “At present, there is no
About the state of Tihar hospital, it says: “Since the communication system either for calling the doctors or for
sending messages at the time of the sudden illness of
any prisoner.”
The Leila Seth Committee report establishes
MEDICAL WORK LOAD AT TIHAR JAIL
that there are only six doctors for 9,000 inmates.
The Jain panel report makes the picture even
■ Prisoners admitted in a year
60,000
grimmer.
“At Tihar, every day about 150 prisoners are ad­
■ New prisoners admitted per day
150
mitted and their medical examination is conducted.
■ Total OPD attendance per day
1,400
The examination ofone prisoner would nearly take
■ Prisoners referred to outside hospitals per day
40 to 50
20-30 minutes. Ifall the prisoners are to be property
examined, 15 doctors should conduct the medical
■ Prisoners at one point of time
8,500(approx)
examination.”
Females
350
The report also points out that: “Special atten­
tion needs to be paid to prisoners who are addicted
Children
55
to drugs. Three wards of 30 beds each need to be
maintained at Tihar jail for de-addiction.” And for
Central Jail Hospital is at present hardly functional, it has to the women prisoners, the reports recommends: “There should
be made functional by upgrading the staff, space and be preferably two women medical doctors as women and
equipment. The hospital should be able to provide basic children are also admitted to the jail.”

2

THE PIONEER 3

^Stench sickens
doctors, no
food for sick
Staff Reporter
New Delhi

HOSPITALS WERE in a filthy state
with overflowing dust bins, unclean
toilets, dusty and littered corridors
as the strike by the Group C and D
staff and nurses entered the sec­
ond day on Thursday.
The kitchens were closed, surg­
eries postponed and OPDs paral­
ysed. Only limited number of pa­
tients were admitted and those who
were brought in a serious condition.
The strike, called by the Joint
Action Committee of Health
Karamchari Unions, would end to­
day. The unions are protesting
against the recommendations of the
fifth Pay Panel and have been de­
manding a dialogue with the
Government since long.
Attendants were seen getting
vegetables and milk in LNJP
Hospital. The authorities had to re­
quest private’guards to supply milk,
bread and fruits to the patients.
OPDs and operations theatres in
Safdaijung Hospital, Guru Tegh
Bahadur Hospital (GTB), Ix)k Nayak
Jai Prakash Hospital (LNJP) and GB
Pant remained closed. Hospitals
were trying to discharge as many
patients as was possible.
The passages in Safdarjung
were littered and the casualty had
blood stains all over the floor. Dust
bins were overflowing with ban­
dages and cotton. Private security
guards in the casualty were push­
ing stretchers and doing the work

of ward boys. A doctors added that
the Hospital normally receives
800 patients in any normal day. But
the numbers had trickled to 100.
In Safdarjung Hospital, employ­
ees poured tarcoal into the keyholes
to prevent locks from being opened.
They also put more locks on gates
and doors. Resident doctors bore
the brunt of the strike of the karamcharis and the partial strike of the
nurses.
Agitated doctors in RML and
Safdarjung Hospitals complained
that the administration had failed
to put the back-up mechanism in
place in the wake of the strike call.
Rather, the HoDs put up duty lists
asking the residents to put in more
hours of work.
President of the Resident Welfare
Association (RWA) of the Safdaijung
Hospital, Dr Lalit Madan, in a let­
ter to the Medical Superintendent
warned the administration,
"against issuing any threats to the
resident doctors or forcing them to
do duties other than the pre­
scribed duties."
President of the RML RWA, Dr AP
Singh also said some HoDs had ver­
bal!) asked residents to put in more
hours without assuring them of any
compensatory offs.
In Safdarjung Hospital, resident
doctors were changing the nappies
of babies, and IV fluids.
A resident doctor said, last night
residents were left to man the
wards without a single ward boy,
nurse, orderly or even a consultant
for assistance.
y

f

M

EXPRESSNewslfee\\
NEW DELHI ■ WEDNESDAY ■ SEPTEMBER 10,1997
•

1

City emergency services out of breath
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

-

NEW DELHI, SEPT 9

X'V THEN a man in the
\/\/ prime of his youth dies
▼ V ffor want of oxygen at a
premier city hospital even after be­
ing brought in time following a se­
vere attack of asthma, it speaks a
lot about the state of emergency
health care services in the coun­
try’s Capital.
But if the man happens to be
the son of the state’s Director of
Health Services, with an entire
family of doctors accompanying
him who watch helplessly in ab­
sence of even the bare minimum
infrastructure, it should amount to
a criminal negligence on part of
those in-charge of the services.
On Friday night. Dr Jeevan
Jha’s 24-year-old son, Viranya, suffered an attack of asthma while the
family was attending a ladies
\sangeet function held in prelude to

his cousin’s wedding inside the even sons-in-law are all doctors and died of haemorrhage by the
campus of Maulana Azad Medical themselves—the patient suffered time he reached the resuscitation
College (MAMC, residential a broncho spasm and collapsed. Dr ward which, then too, was located
quarters).
Jha is now planning to take up the several hundred metres away from
The family rushed him to the matterwithauthoritiesatthehigh- the casualty.
casualty of the Lok Nayak Hospi- est level and is even considering fil­
The situation is particularly bad
ial where he was advised immedi­ inga legal suit
these days as the nurses go on
ate resuscitation.
But the hospital
administra- strike after their morning~ shift it...
But in a hospital where the tion, in a bid to cover up, has been self, and take away with them the
emergency care has been paral­ issuing a series of frantic orders, keys
keysto
toall
allthe
theinventories
inventoriesthat
thatthey
they
ysed for over two weeks now due The
— administration
_J——2— held tele- maintain with them. That’s preto its crumbling building, precious phonic discussions with Dr Sumit cisely what happened on Friday
time was lost in wheeling him to Ray, president of the Resident night
J What more, even the trolleys>
the ward on the first floor since the Doctors’ Association, and Dr are not available since they are also
lift was not working.
Kapil Kochhar, and decided that locked up.
Even after reaching the ward, the keys of the emergency. opera.
In an earlier order of August
the doctors
J—;-----could
12 do2.2
little as the2vi• tion
tiontheatre
theatrewill
willstay
staywith
withthe
theCasuCasu- 29, the hospital
\
MS, Dr Bharat
tai incubation equipment and the ally Medical Officer or the Chief Singh, had asked the doctors to ac­
oxygen cylinders were not avail- Casualty Medical Officer... (pre­ cept only “veiy serious” cases for
able since they had been locked up sumably, so that the above situa- admission in the departments of
by the nurses who had then pro- tion doesn’t arise again).
_ ,
paediatric surgery, neuro surgery
ceeded on strike without handing
~~~
Three
weeks ago, the hospital or orthopaedic surgery, in a clear
the charge over to someone else,
sources maintain, a former head of violation of the recent Supreme
Even as the doctor’s family the radiology at the Lok Nayak Court order that prohibited the
watched helplessly — Dr Jha’s Hospital, Dr M.M. Saha, was simi- government hospitals from refusbrother, his two daughters and larly wheeled in the casualty ward ingadmission to any patient who
---------------------------------------- ----------

requires it.
And even after the August 22
orders, making the posting of
anaesthetists mandatory in the
emergency ward, none is available
in the hour of need.
Ifall these things, in addition to
the general chaos at the hospital
- -r--1
due its crumbling building, are not
reasons enough to shake the administration out of its slumber,
nothing would ever possibly do.
“Ifthe handpicked team of our
health minister, comprising doctor
Bharat Singh and Dr Preeti as the
heads of such a premier hospital,
. too hot to
are finding the situation
handle, it is time either for the minister to give up or change the administration,” an irate faculty
member said, while reminding that
the minister was gracious enough
to suspend^ house surgeon of this
very hospital in 1994, when he had
refused admission to a bums patient for want ofreferral papers.

•l

I

I

s

Stir benefits private hospitals
afford to admit are being sent back
after first aid,” he said.
At Ganga Ram Hospital in

RAJESH KUMAR
NEW DELHI, SEPT 4

PRIVATE hospitals and nurs­
ing homes in the Capital have, per­ were not too seriouswere accommo­ tim later identified as S.K. TUteja
haps, never had it so good.
dated on a single bed to make space. arrived in a critical state after being
With employees at nine munici­
turned backby the DDU Hospital
According to the casualty inpal hospitals also deciding to join charge, Dr Atul Kohli, half the pa­ today, also reported full occupancy.
their 25,000 counterparts in 23 aty
Dr B.IC Jawa, casualty in-charge,
tients thronging there had viral
hospitals in their stir against the fever, while the rest were accident however, maintained that the pa­
Fifth Pay Commission, a complete victims and those suffering from tients’ rush was considerably less
collapse of Delhi’s public health routine ailments. “Viral and than on Wednesday.
The striking employees at the
care system today compelled har­ malaria seem to be the most com­
ried patients to turn to expensive mon ailments in this part of the National Institute of Commumca- ,
ble Diseases and the National
private health shops for help.
” he said.
.
MalariaEradicationProgramme in
The nurses at the Government Capital,
At Batra Hospital m South North Delhi burnt the effigy of the
hospitals also stayed away from
as Delhi, similarly, ffie doctors rework after themnmuwu
morning shift, as ported double occupancy while a Union Finance Minister.
Elsewhere too, the health care
part of their countdown to a com­
September 10. Con- large number of patients were en- services remained paralysed on the
plete strike on Septemoer
_
themselves m the waiting
sequently, while Government hos­ list, hoping for their tum when the last day of the 48-hour strike. While
pitals wore a deserted look for the recovering patients got discharged. the employees are scheduled to re­
second day today, their private
Dr Nand Kishore, casualty med­ sume their normal duties from Fri­
counterparts were seen choc-aday morning, it is unlikely to re­
ical officer, said they had already ex­
bloc with critically ill patients need­ hausted their free beds for poor pa­ move the miseries of the Capital s
ailing since the nurses have decided
ing immediate medical care.
Since Wednesday,-private hos- tients as a large number of trauma to work on one shift only. On Sepcases, mainly the accident victims,
the number of patients approach- from Government hospitals.
resort to a complete strike.
^mg them for treatment. In Jaipur
TTVOfc

___________ .

.

.

‘

- --------------

ssr*

2

I

^HolakesepidemicTorm in U
Vr llvz

Blswajeet Banerjee
Lucknow

OUTBREAK OF polio is taking an
epidemic proportion in Uttar
Pradesh as hundreds of cases have
been reported from various parts
of the State including Capital
Lucknow.
.
,
Over 50 cases were registered
at St Mary’s Polyclinic in the State
Capital in last two months. A sev­
en-month-old child has already
succumbed to the dreaded disease
at the Polyclinic.
The State Capital tops the list as
far as the number of reported cas­
es are concerned. As many as 89
polio cases have already been re­
ported from Shantinagar Hospital,

Ruihar
Bulbar form,
form, essentially
essentially aa 1lethal
dreaded disease.
Parents of Himanshu, a twoyear-old boy from Ram Snehi
Ghat, Bara Banki, have given him
only one drop of polio. "No^°^y
hOChotmnhaScknow resident told us that another drop is to be ^Dr Brigeetha told The Pioneer
vrn
his father said.
Patients from neighbouring dis­
tricts including Allahabad, Bara
Banki, Gonda, Bahraich. Sitapur
farout Akbarpur have
treatment in the St
The director of
S?Man's records reveals that Mary's hospital J^director
form the State.
J/

19 children, afflicted with polio,
are from Lucknow district alone.
Majority of them have not been
given polio drops. Parents of most
of them have not even heard about
Pulse Polio programme which
was lauched with much fanfare
with an aim to eradicate this

iSi

th.sGoing

he"^™ "bXinal

the age group from infancy to 5

type, which has mainly a
yeRrpSci of Luck Polio kids
affect. "A/ew of the them have the
Best ol luck, ru

3

A
// - City__
Scores of specialist posts I
I vacant in govt hospitals
Safdarjung Hospital was no dif­
vacant in these hospitals.
The worst sufferer were the pa­ ferent. Of the seven posts in the I
tients who needed plastic surgery, cardiology department, only one
New Delhi
required mostly in burn cases. Out post is filled on a regular basis and
four are bing vacant, according to
AT LEAST 100 posts of specialist of 20 posts of plastic surgeons the Health ministry.
sanctioned
in
the
Safdarjung
doctors are lying vacant in three
Referring to JIPMF.R at
Government hospitals in the Hospital, only four (two on ad hoc) Pondicherry, the Health ministry
are
filled,
while
out
of
five
exist
­
Capital, of which only 18 posts
said of the 133 posts of specialists
were filled on ad hoc basis, the ing posts in RML, there is only one sanctioned, only 99 were filled on
plastic
surgeon,
the
Central
Union Health ministry admitted
regular basis, while four were re­
Government said.
before the Delhi High Court.
cruited on ad hoc basis. The rest
The
Government
passed
on
the
The ministry, through its coun­
34 are lying vacant.
buck
to
the
Union
Public
Service
sel Adish Aggarwal, informed
The High Court had also taken
Commission
(UPSC)
saying
that
Justice C M Nayar that as many tnougn uh- nuulu....o=.
strong exception to the way top
though
the
authorities
had
inas 42 posts of specialists were ly­ formed the Commission for filling politicians and semot•bureaut rats
ing vacant in Safdarjung Hospital,
were availing treatment aoroau
while there were 32 vacancies in up of these posts, recommenda­ and had asked the ministry to pro­
tions
had
been
received
for
five
Ram Manohar Lohia (RML)
vide a complete list of those who
Hospital and 14 in Lady Hardinge posts only. There are no urologists had availed treatment in_foreign
in the urology department of
Medical College (LHMC).
countries during 1992-97.
The court had expressed dis­ RML Hospital, as the two posts
The court had asked for the de­
sanctioned
were
lying
vacant.
pleasure over the sorry state of af­
tails of vital diagnostic machines
Similar
is
the
situation
in
the
gasfairs in the Government hospitals,
King idle in the Government hos­
where patients have to wait for troentrology and nephrology de­ pitals. The Health ministry had
hours to get treated and had asked partments.
of affairs in filed the lists before the court.
\\ for a list of specialist posts lying
The state
st
. Staff Reporter

i

9

(Move to revive mos
control plan in TN
ganised recently in Hyderabad to commemorate
By Our Special Correspondent
the centenary of the epoch making discovery’ by
NEW DELHI, Sept. 3. Sir Ronald Ross that malaria was transmitted by
The Government is considering a proposal to mosquitoes.
i revive the project for eradicating ^os^uito HUii! ii ■; Jiu! •
through the ■'sterile insect technology. ;
The technology is based on the principle that
the female mosquitoes, which transmit malaria,
could be eliminated at one go by releasing mil­
lions of sterilised male mosquitoes from aircraft
or ground- based machines.
The mosquito control project had been pro­
posed to be launched in Delhi as early as the
early 1970’s but was given up by the Govern­
ment following allegations that it had connec­
tions with biological w'arfare. The allegation
was prompted by reports that instead of focuss­
ing on malaria, the project scientists had been
genetically manipulating Aedes Aegypti mosquites that spread yellow fever. It is now set to be
revived in Chennai and other towns of Tamil
Nadu, to tackle Anopheles Stephensi. the mosj quito species that thrives on water in overhead
tanks and thus most prevalent in urban areas.
The proposal for reviving the project has been
mooted by the Department of Atomic Energy,
which has a strong biomedical research team.
The plan is to use mosquitoes sterilised by nucle­
ar radiation. The proposal also came up for a
detailed discussion at a special session as part of
the global conference on malaria which was or-

X^heumatic ^&rt disease
may have genetic origin

\parasympatholytics
no help in asthma

The cornerstone of treatment for acute asthma is inhaled sympathomimetics. but the value
> STUDY in Srinagar
^om- beenlink^Vith rhe^natoid arthritis.
of the concomitant use of inhaled parasympatholytics. such as ipratropium, is unclear.
A mo" ™
«
RHD occurs in some persons who develop
Researchers from Case Western
Reserve Uni
sequeuuu.
-­ £ ^rmo°f 1000 children, may be linked.to a rheumatic fever ' e^Xud^sonthroat
versity used a prospective, sequential studyr de
genetically inherited protein, reports
Sci- severe
SlreptocoPCCus bacteria.
X^iS^whhiheaiMition of.praenpatients with rheumatic heart disease in
According to Dr. Bhat. susceptibility to RHD is
tropium bromide. American J. Mid (Jan.
led- While there probably Kashmir were found to have
related to a poor immune response to Strep <
An expert commenl

“"”“8 “*
11U3L luvu

■

“ lastingly,
this-...........
study
...........
iects’ approval because the use of »PrdtroP1^
was considered an accepted and efTectiv^Xto treating asthma.
X \

q .

XKSSS-SS«hd

w“

f

/ Low-cost herbal drug for thalassemia
A

'

HERBAL, drug for the management of expensive oral drug deferiprone, developedrby a

with free iron in the blood stream and gets ex-

But*according
But
according to Dilip Chopra, president of
the Thalassemia Society of India (TSI), most of
those who started on this drug have discontinued because of the side effects.
The new herbal drug, on the other, hand,
costs less than Rs. 350 a month and has no side
effect, said Ajit Kumar Sarkar, a CSIR chemist
and one of the five persons in whose names the
patent has been filed.
A few drops of the herbal preparation taken
twice a day removes,the excess .iron as efficiently
as desferal. a six-jnoftth stqdy on 50 patients
has shown. Some 2001) thalassemics
...............are alt
ready on this drug.
According to information provided to the U.S.
patent office, the herbal preparation contains
the chemical ‘anemonin’ that forms a complex

up the iron but the exact formulation has been
kept a secret by the CSIR.

which can be taken orally British scientist, went into commercial produc- creted through urine. Addition to quinine sulAx\ xAJL thalassemia
phate enhanced the drug’s efficacy of mopping
and does not have any side effect will be a lion in India.
vivlu.o u,
- Ua puuu
boon tu
to uwuaauua
thousands ui
of victims
of this genetic
/ blood disorder, claims its developers at the Counoil of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR),
according to PTI Science Service.
About 100,()()() thalassemic babies are born
each year the world over, 8000 in India alone.
.The thalassemics require monthly blood transftisions but this results in excessive accumulation of iron in the body — the main cause of
early death in patients with thalassemia.
Till recently Ciba Geigy's desferal (deferoxamine methane sulphonate) has been the only
drug available for removing the iron overload.
But this needs to be injected twice or thrice a day
using a Rs. 10,000 pump. The injections are not
only painful but cost about Rs. 14,000 a month.
Hopes were raised two years ago when the less

A

‘

Although India is the birth place of many
useful medicinal plants this particular herb
known as windflower’ plant grows wild in parts
of Europe, Russia and Turkey.
Certain places in the Himalayan range have
been identified for cultivating this plant in India
but rjghtt now the medicine is prepared with the
herb or its extract imported from abroad.

Despite its growing popularity among paticnls, the TSI is yet to endorse the herbal drug
for use in thalassemia clinics across the country
because the drug has not yet been evaluated in
hospital based study.

■

.«1

1

. 1

1

.

1 »

-i
>

■

beenl“cXXe
‘-'lights ondduringhdavtbeen

°° drite^h’

\sr."£ ■“^s^.rs

V

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e-

Ji
/fyE TIMES OF INDIA, MUMBAI

^IDS spreading

fast among
y\A
heterosexuals H 1 I
The Times of India News Service

NEW DELHI: The acquired immuno
deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is no
longer restricted to what are known
as high risk groups, like sex workers,
truck drivers and intravenous drug
users. Now the heterogeneous popu
lation poses the biggest challenge.
This was disclosed at a panel dis
cussion and presentation called
“AIDS Update,’’ at the India Interna­
tional Centre on Tuesday.
Manager Prakash Jha of the AIDS
control programme at the World
Bank said, "The pattern of the spread
of the AIDS epidemic throughout the
world has been from high-risk
groups to intravenous drug users,
and then to the heterosexual popula­
tion.”
Recent trends on the transmission
of the HIV virus in India show that
74.3 per cent is through heterosexual
activity, 7.4 per cent through intrave­
nous drug use, 8.6 per cent through
blood transfusion and .7 per cent
through homosexual activity. Appar­
ently, the latest figures show that the
contribution of blood transfusion in
the spread of the virus has fallen to
6.8 per cent.
Additional project director, Na­
tional AIDS Control Organisation,
S.K. Satpathy stated that, “Stringent
measures in both, giving licences to
blood banks and in their functioning,
have brought down the figure. Our
emphasis would now be to do away
with professional donors.”
Till July 1997, the number of re­
ported AIDS cases in the country was
4,828. Of them, most were in the age
group of 15 to 44 and one fourth were
women. "The most affected age
group being the sexually active and
economically productive,” added Dr
Satpathy.
As the presence of HIV virus in
one’s blood stream brings down the
immunity level of a person, he or she
is prey to a variety of diseases. "Most
of us have the tuberculosis virus in
us. But we would probably not get af­
fected by the disease in our lifetime.
But the presence of the HIV virus in­
creases the risk,” he stated. Figures
show that 62 per cent of the AIDS
cases have tuberculosis.

»
4

t

VtY/
The Indian EXPRESS
■ NEW DELHI ■ TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 9,1997

Life-saving fluids threaten
patients at RML Hospital
November 1999), which is currently in possessionofNmsZinehasaballofblackfungusgrowing at the bottom.
What make the two discoveries particularly
shocking
---- „is the fact that the contamination has
beennoticed
noticedinindifferent
differentproducts
productsof
ofthe
thesame
same
been
company bearing different batch numbers. The
doctors said this had raised serious doubts about
the quality of the entire range of life-saving drugs
that
are being supplied by the company.
RAJESH KUMAR
The doctors do not even know how many
NEW DELHI, SEPT 8
products could be similarly contaminated as the
company has been supplying an entire range of
y TIGHLY-CONTAMINATED supplies
IV fluids to the hospital for a long time. And if all
With nurses routinely striking
|1 —I of the life-saving intravenous (IV) fluid
the supphes are withdrawn, it could lead to a
A Aare posing a serious health hazard to
work after their morning shift,
crisis situation in the hospital since only one
unsuspecting patients at the Capital’s- Ram
company supplies the fluid. The patients at sev­
drug
inventories
are
currently
Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital.
eral other city hospitals where the same sup­
Doctors at the Central Government-run
being handled by the doctors
plies go are also at risk.
hospital yesterday seized two bottles of the vital
“The contamination of a single batch usu­
themselves.
fluid, bearing the manufacturer’s label of
ally
indicates a breach in the product’s manu­
Ahmedabad-based Core Healthcare Limited,
facturing
or sterilisation process at its particuthat were found to be contaminated with a mas­
.lvu The
* doctors in all the emergency and
sta8e i^tf- But the same breach in case of
infected.
sive fungal growth.
wards were asked to reject the so- different products manufactured at different
Even as a shocked administration issued an recui
---- iperative
r .
222 2'22, manufac----- J~
times suggests that something is inherently
urgent order for the immediate withdrawl of lution bearing Lbatch1 no 023-3410,
tured
in'october
1995
and
expiring
in
1998.
wrong
in the quality control process at the manthe entire supply of that particular batch, yet an­
other bottle bearing a different batch number The sealed bottles were later handed over to> ufacturer’s bottling plants,” another medical
was today found to be similarly infected with a the medical superintendent, Dr C.P. Singh, who expert today commented.
in turn issued the orders banning their use.
Dr Sood, who detected the first bottle, when
large, black ball of fungus.
This
morning,
in
another
ward,
the
bottle
of
contacted
today, refused to comment on the isThe seizures were made in the nick of time
by alert doctors on duty, before they could be a different IV fluid (KIDRAL multiple elec- sue while Dr Sanna was not available m the
administered to critical patients. The doctors trolytes and dextrose injection, iype-I USP) hospital. Dr Singh, however, said the defective
also manufactured by Core Healthcare but stock
stockhad
hadjbeenwithdrawn
been withdrawn and
andwas teir^sent
bearing
a
different
batch
number
was
found
to
back
to
the
Drug
Controller
of India (DCI),
they received the transfusion of the fungus-in­ belnfSledwith black fungus. The sealed bot- who will examine the complaint
and take necfected fluid. The transfusion, they said, could
__ e____ ;_______ ...I"-------- ,
<
■’ action.
” He,
’
--------------------essary
however,
appeared
to be ig«
have caused symptoms such as severe chills, tie (bearingbatch number 2.25.1815, manufacturing date: December 1996, and expiry date: norant about today’s seizure.
^Srigour and subsequent death of the patients.

Doctors have seized
three bottles
contaminated with a
massive fungal growth

IxA * V*

UJ

wwaa

w

—— — — — —

Around 5 p.m. yesterday in the surgical
- -hospital,
• ’ as the
’ doctor
’ •
emergency wingo of; the
in-charge, Dr Rajiv Sood, took out a bottle of
‘Improdex’ solution to give it to a patient of
head injury, he discovered to his horror a
whitish fungal growth in the clear liquid. The
"Whitish
drug inventories are currently being handled by
the doctors themselves, with nurses routinely
striking work after their morning shift.
Another bottle later taken out of the drug
inventory by Dr Sanna turned out to be equally

India, EU sign $200m. aid agreement
IIIMIM,

_

By Batuk Gathani
BRUSSELS, Sept. 3.
India and the European Union signed an
agreement in Luxemborg on Tuesday envisag­
ing a $200-million E.U. aid for the country’s
primary health care programme. The two sides
discussed a wide range of issues of bilateral in­
terest. They also utilised the occasion to discuss
the political parameters identified by the Europe­
an Commission - a “communication” on EUIndia relations in June 1996, and the “conclu­
sions” drawn by the European Council on the
■ same theme in December. For the first time, the
political aspects of these documents were dis­
cussed in depth.
The Indian side was represented by the Minis­
ter of State for Foreign Affairs, Ms. Kamala Sin­
ha, and the European Commission by Mr.
Jacques Poos, Luxembourg Vice-Premier, who is
also Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Co­
operation. Luxembourg is currently president of
the E.U.
According to E. U. sources, the dialogue fo­
cussed on South Asia- specific issues such as
Indo-Pakistan relations, the South Asian Asso­
ciation for Regional Co-operation and the devel­
opments in Afghanistan. The European officials
, g^vt^an overview*. oV developments jji Euroj^e

such as the proposed expansion of the E. U. and
the recent reforms in the E. U. treaty. United
Nations reforms and steps to develop a future
bilateral relationship in “new multipolar world
order” were also discussed.
Other officials present were: Mr. Derek Fatchett, the British Minister of State for Foreign and
Commonwealth Affairs, Mr. Hans Van Mierlo,
Deputy Prime Minister of Holland and also Min­
ister for Foreign Affairs, and Mr. Mannuel Ma­
rin, Vice-President of the European Commission.
The meeting took place in the Senningden
castle and lasted over three hours.
For some time now E. U. officials have been
talking about holding a special bilateral “politi­
cal dialogue” with India. The idea gained
ground, especially after India was kept out of the
orbit of the "Europe-Asia” dialogue initiative
which culminated in a summit of European and
Asian leaders in Bangkok last year. The contro­
versial meeting was held under the auspices of
the Euro-Asian dialogue and was organised by
ASEAN countries which excluded India, but in­
cluded China, Japan and South Korea. As if to
make amends for the lapse, it was agreed that
India could be invited to the next summit, to be
held in London in 1998.
DPA, Reuter report:
The E.U. has promised to build a more "sub-

stantial relationship” with India, covering trade,
investment and political issues.
Separately, the union officials also unveiled
the aid programme to upgrade primary health
and population control programmes in India.
The officials said this was Europe’s largestever aid programme in Asia. The aim was to
move away from traditional family planning
projects to what the E.U. aid expert called a
more advanced approach, including maternal
education, pre-natal care and contraception.
Speaking at the meeting with Ms. Sinha, Mr.
Marin and Mr. Poos said the E.U. wanted to
inject a new dynamism into Euro-Indian rela­
tions.
Mr. Poos, said Europe’s relations with India
must reflect the country’s growing international
clout.
Europe’s contacts with India should be in line
with the importance of this country and its real
and potential influence in the world, Mr. Poos
told a news conference.
Mr. Marin that while the E.U. was India’s
largest trading partner and biggest source of
foreign investment, both sides needed to boost
their geopolitical dialogue.
The E.U. has suggested that senior Indian and
European officials must hold more irequent
high-level discussions to reinforce political links.

zWHO alert on new
influenza virus
By P. Sunderarajan

With influenza type B and“l

In children

M«.n» A or ££’“;,y
With the new virus strata that h6"^ °f lnfect'™

5.?""

»«■ ».m»8 ™K'ES“

Research on Influenza in the US

and

o.£I" S" ’FSK ‘S?I™ >"<1

whether any other person
t0 deter™ne
the strain.
°n had been infected by

■ \' 1
J

/

SX^AM
Working for a Better World

OXFAM (INDIA) TRUST
C
’ .'H
tf

!

Dated : 10th November, 1997

Dear Dr. Ravi Narayan

Please fmd the enclosed set of photocopies of the newspaper «UppingsJn cotmect^n
with India Disasters Report.... We
... will
.. be sending you the next set of clippings very soon.
Thanking you, with regards,

Udoy Sankar Saikia
Consultant
India Disasters Report
OXFAM (India) Trust
B-3 Geetanjali Enclave
New Delhi-17

Head Office : 274 Banbury Road, Oxford 0X2 7DZ, U.K.
Regional Offices : Bangalore, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Calcutta & Bhubaneswar

\0

From: Ravi Narayan

Subject: From: Ravi Narayan
Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 15:23:51 +0530
From: Community Health Cell <sochara@vsnl.com>
Organization: Community Health Cell
To: Sanjiv Lewin <lewin@vsnl.com>
Dear Sanjiv,
Thanks for your report from St. John's, which was an excellent one.
Congratulations not only on the good work done but also on the
methodical way it has been listed out in the de-briefing report.
We are forwarding 2 reports we have received from two of our sources in
Gujarat which we thought may be of interest to you. You must have
received the report from Unni and Ramappa. Many people have been in
touch with us including the junior doctors from BMC. Could we meet soon
to discuss how we all could liaise with each other's efforts for the
phase of rehabilitation that will be starting up soon. It would be great
if the Disaster Relief & Training Cell of St. John's would be willing to
consider more than just St. John's response. And perhaps become the
planning cell for the Bangalore Response as well.

We need to discuss this soon. All the best.

Ravi / Arjun.

t

\\P55OVPiRita LoboYEC Letters-MinutesVEC Letter 9.3.2001 .doc

Earthquake updite

Subject: Earthquake update
Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 15:43:17 +0550
Ft-om: VHSHYOG PARTVAR TRUST <viniyog@bom3.vsnl.net.in>
To: PREMDASS <SOCHARA@blr.vsnl.net.in>

'

7

Dea^j Friends,
Fifteen days after the earthquake, life is still haywire for many families=
in-20
Kutch and Saurasuthra. 224 mild tremors of aftershocks are reported in la:
st=20
15 days, continuing the reign of terror.

300 volunteers of Viniyog Parivar distributed and/or guided in distributio=
n=20
of over 1000 truck loads of food material at different places. This work wa=
s=20
done in the first five days. Hunger is partially overcome. Affected peop:
le=20
now need psychological rehabilitation. A team of five senior volunteers^
visited=20
devastated villages and talked to the affected people, discussed their pro=
blems=20
and considered how we can be helpful to them, such 30 teams visited 994 vil=
lages=20
in 10 talukas of Kutch district. A detailed report of all these 994 villag:
es=20
is published by "Gujarat Samachar", Ahmedabad. Those who are interested,=
can=20
reserve their copies. Those who are having internet facilities can visit t=
he=20
site "www.gujaratsamachar.com”
Jain Sangh is also badly affected due to this earthquake. A large number o=
f=20
temples upashrayas, Gnan Bhandars, Pathshalas are also affected. A detailed=
report=20
about the latest position of these is also prepared.
Animals are worst affected. Animals have not died so much
due to earthq=
uake, =20
but they are dying due to hunger because there is no one to take care of
them.=20
Govt, figures put animal deaths at about 19000, but Viniyog’s survey re:
veals=20
that more than 40000 animals are dead due to hunger out of 110000 animals =
in=20
Kutch.
The unfortunate part is that due to drought conditions prevailin=
g=20
since last year there is no fodder available in the State. Govt. has brough=
t=20
3 lakh tons of fodder through railway but there is no proper distribution c=
hanne1.

I

Animal Welfare Board of India has taken this matter seriously and
has ar=
ranged=20
1000 MT of wheat and 161 MT of rice for cattle feed from Food Corporatio=
n=20
of India. AWBI Chairman Justice Gumanmalji Lodha has informed that he is =
much=20
worried as animals are the lifeline of Kutch. Shri Lodhaji will be visit!
ng=20
Gujarat from 19th to 24th February and he will assess the situation a=
nd=20
take decision for further assistance.

Viniyog

has started sending truck’s of dry

fodder

(Gawar chunni from Punj=

lof2

2/19/01 4:2!

Earthquake update

ab)=20
to affected areas with volunteers. One such truckload of fodder costs Rs.35=
000/-.=20
Smt. Maneka Gandhi, Minister of State, Ministry of Social Justice & Empow=
erment,=20
also holding charge of Animal Welfare, Govt, of India, has sanctioned gran=
t=20
for 15 truckloads of fodder from her Ministry, to be distributed through =
Viniyog=20
Parivar Trust. Animal lovers worldwide are requested to help for fodder imm=
ediately.
A scheme for rehabilitation

of quake affected people is under preparation.=

=20

Eco-friendly and economical houses with indigenous material will be constr=
ucted=20
by Viniyog Parivar. The cost of each house will be approximately
one lak=
h=20
rupees. A detailed scheme will be placed before you shortly after the an=
nouncement=20
of Gujarat Government’s policy.

Please visit our website at "www.viniyog.org "
Thanks and regards,

Girish Shah
Viniyog Parivar

\0

3 of 3

2/19/01 3:36 PM

Re: [nifriendcircle] The quake: an update from the field

Subject: Re: [mfriendcircle] The quake: an update from the field
Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 10:39:50 +0530
From: ’’Amar Jesani" <jesani@vsnl.com>
Reply-To: mfnendcircle@yahoogroups.com
To: <mffiendcircle@yahoogroups.com>, <pha-ncc@egroups.com>
Dear Sridhar,
Thanks for the earthquack updates.
There has been explosion of info in the cyberspace on this subject. Some points are confusing. For instance, there has
been a consistent allegation of bias and discrimination. I happened to see the following petition of individuals and NGOs. It
would help to learn about the exact nature and extent of such bias and discrimination. If you have more onfo, please do
send it.

Amar

Amar Jesam
(Home) 310 Prabhu Darshan, S. Sainik Nagar
Amboli, Andheri West, Mumbai 400058, India
Tel:(91)(22) 623 0227. Email: jesani@vsnl.com

EARTHQUAKE AFFECTED RELIEF & REHABILITATION SERVICES (EARRS)
C/o. SXSSS, P O BOX 4088, Ahmedabad 380009 (Tel: 079- 7410764)

EARRS Documentation February 13:
EARRS is a secular and non-sectarian civil society initiative by several NGOs and social action groups converged
• to provide relief to quake victims,
•

respect the efforts of other NGOs and networks in earthquake relief

• evolve long term reconstruction & rehabilitation,
• facilitate compensation claims,

• monitor relief efforts by the State and others to ensure that relief reaches all irrespective of caste, religion, gender and age,
• advocate and campaign for disaster policy and management.

Joined EARRS:
53. AWAG
54. IFIE
55. SANCHETANA
56. SAHR-WARU
Next Meeting of EARRS

Wednesday Feb. 14, 5.30 p.m.
Venue : SXSSS, Opp. St. Xavier's School Loyola.

7

Agenda:
- Review relief efforts.
- Discuss the caste/ communal or other biases in relief/ rehab, efforts, work out future
action programme.
- Discuss the strategies for rehabilitation and disaster management policy.

EARTHQUAKE RELIEF: ISSUES OF CONCERN

’

irwim *

iiii i s

Tm-----

Relief efforts in Kutoh and Saurashtra are being biased against the dalit and Muslim victims. Sangh Parivar

2/19/01 3:38 PM

l*of4

Re: [mfriendcircle] The quake: an update from the field

organisations, In connivance with the State administration are systematically ensuring that these vulnerable
groups do not get proper relief and compensation. Complaints have come from dalit and Muslim dominated areas
of Bhuj, villages In Kutch, Mallya-Miyana town, villages In Saurashtra. IVe are planning to compile a detailed report
on these discriminations in relief work and represent before the NHRC and State/Central authorities. Any specific
grassroots experiences or cases (with details) are welcome:

Is there discrimination on the basis of localities in a village, town or city?
Is there discrimination between urban and rural areas ?
Is

there

discrimination

against

dalits

and

the

areas

they

live

in

versus

non

Dalits?

Is there discrimination on communal grounds? Need to examine the position of Muslims and
Christians (eg. Muslim citizens who had taken shelter in the Mundra mosque)
Is there discrimination against women and children ?

Whether the cash doles from the Government and/or relief in respect of lost household effects, have
reached or not reached the concerned localities?
In respect of temporary shelters - have they been provided to all ? If not, to whom have they been
provided? Whether there is any aspect of discrimination involved (communal or casteist bias?)

Memorandum to the government on principles and provisions for rehabilitation and reconstruction policy In
earthquake affected areas of Gujarat:
12 February, 2001
To: Shri Keshubhai Patel
Chief Minister of Gujarat
New Sachivalaya,
Gandhinagar, Gujarat

Dear Shri Keshubhai,
We, the concerned citizens and representatives of various people's organizations, recognize the stupendous task of
rehabilitation of the earthquake affected regions of Gujarat,
particularly Kutch and Saurashtra.

1

We are and will be with the people in rebuilding their lives and communities.
We welcome the government’s efforts in coordinating and harnessing the work of different organizations committed to this
task.

We, having worked in the various fields of society, and in times of calamities, both natural and human-made, and having
experienced the happenings in the recent earthquake affected areas in Gujarat, firmly believe that there are certain
fundamental principles which should govern the process and plan of rehabilitation which will give a real opportunity to the
people to build a self-reliant and sustainable community.
We would urge that the government and all other stakeholders should keep these principles in mind while determining the
policy and program for the same. These we believe, should also serve ad the criteria for entering into any understanding
and plans for collaboration among the various agencies including the State, NGOs, and also any private corporation.

Sincerely,
Jst (Retd) Ravani, Ahmedabad

Girish Patel, Advocate Lok Adhikar Sangh, Ahmedabad

Haroobhai Mehta. Advocate, High Court, Gujarat
Mahesh Bhatt, Advocate, Ahmedabad

Medha Patkar, Narmada Bachao Andolan & National Alliance of People's Movements
Charul Bharawada, Architect and Planner, Abhigam, Ahmedabad

•i

2 of 4

2/19/01 3:38 PM

Re: [mfriendcircle] The quake: an update from the field
Ravi Kuchimanchi, Civil Engineer Association for India's Development, Mumbai

Rupal & Rajendra Desai, Architects, TARU, Ahmedabad
Dinkar Dave, Samanvaya Guajrat, Ahmedabad
Rajni Dave Manviya Technology Forum, Ahmedabad
Tushar Shah Cardiac Surgeon, Ahmedabad

Cc: Shri A. B. Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India
Cc: Shri Jagmohan, Urban Development Minister, Union of India
Cc: Smt. Menaka Gandhi, Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Union of India
Principles and provisions suggested for rehabilitation and reconstruction policy In earthquake affected areas of
Gujarat:
1.
Now that the emergency and the first phase of rescue and relief is almost over, we urge that all the governmental and
non governmental agencies must urgently shift to the employment generation plans and programs with food-for work
arrangements, ensuring livelihood opportunities for the earthquake affected.

*

2.
Every group involved In the social, economic, & physical reconstruction of Kutch and Saurashtra - the earthquake
affected region must grant and respect people's right to information and right to participate in the planning process, with full
freedom of expression at every stage of planning and execution. There should be complete transparency and
accountability on the part of the State and the donor agencies.

3.
Community participation must be sought through representatives of various socio economic sections within as a
precondition for design, planning, site and material selection, material procurement, construction, and utilization of
resources.

•j

4.
The earthquake-affected members of the community should be given the top priority in skilled and unskilled livelihood
opportunities arising during the reconstruction and rehabilitation process.
5.

Whether for cities, towns, or villages, relocation should as far as possible, be avoided.

6.
New community location should be planned with clear consent from each mohallas / falia [vaas] and as far as
possible, the village commune.
7.
Where there is even partial, minimum relocation of a community, forcible, unjust land acquisition should be avoided.
The scheduled castes, scheduled and nomadic tribes, other socially and economically backward class communities, should
be especially protected against land alienation.
8.

No urban relocation, if any, should be at the displacement or deprivation cost of the rural communities.

9.
Reconstruction planning should include apart from housing, community amenities [health, education, water supply,
grazing ground, etc], all of which can be part of the final village resettlement plan.

10.
New housing and community reconstruction should have facilities for land conservation, maximum rainwater
harvesting, soak pits & drainage, along with other appropriate technology measures to fill water and energy requirements.
11. It is not the choice of material but choice of house-building technology that is one of the main factors determining the
scale and nature of earthquake impact. In reconstruction, therefore, the choice of technology should necessarily be based
on multiple criteria, including self-reliance of the community, availability of the material, and earth-quake proofing
technology.
12.
There should be no forcible, stereotype housing imposed on people, killing or rejecting their diversity of type of
technology, and cultural aspects.
13.

Wherever possible, such as in the villages of Saurashtra, retrofitting should be a priority over new construction.

14. Not big companies or builders, but the representatives of affected communities, people's organizations, NGOs, and
the local government should form a body for decision making at every level of planning and execution of a project, where
funds and inputs are to come from outside the community.

15. All funds received from any agency, national or international, including the collection of surcharge, must be deposited
into a separate fund / account related to the earthquake disaster and must be utilized only for the purpose for which it is
assigned.
16.

An independent high power committee with eminent persons from various walks of life should be immediately

1

2/19/01 3:38 PM

3 of 4

Re: [mfriendcircle] The quake: an update from the field
constituted to monitor the planning and execution, including expenditure at each - national, state and local - stage.

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4 of 4

2/19/01 3:38 PM

■7? AV- 10
31"' January 2001
Gujarat earthquake shatters lives.
Timely response can minimise misery
We are rushing this to you at a tune when we are working round the clocka earthquake ravaged and
deeply traumatised people in Gujarat Disasters are not new in our country, but rarely we have witnessed a
devastation that is so huge and so painful.

I he death loll has already crossed 20.()()() and more deaths arc being reported with each passing day.
There is a strong feeling that a large number of people are still buried under the debris of collapsed
buildings.

The most urgent need of the hour is to mitigate the suffering of those w ho managed to survive, but are
now highly vulnerable. The earthquake couldn't have chosen a worse time for its onslaught as most of the
quake affected areas in Gujarat have already been reeling under the third consecutive year of drought.
People's economy is already in shambles and they are in no position to recover from this tragic blow on
their own. Worser, parts of Kutch are still to recover from the 1998 cyclone that devastated
the area.
The earthquake has left behind over one hundred thousand people with broken limbs and multiple
injuries. They arc now desperate for emergency medical relief.
With nearly 90 per cent dwellings completely damaged in many places,temporary shelter has become the
most pressing need of the people. Chilly w inter nights arc further accentuating the woes of survivors,
especially the poor children, women and the elderly. Many of them have no other option, butto spend
their nights under the open sky with very little or no clothing for keeping themselves warm.

Needless to say that the earthquake affected people in Gujarat are desperate for help to overcome
their shock and misery and start rebuilding their shattered lives.
We at Oxfam India are among the first ones to reach the affected people. At present, the teams of doctors
that Oxfam India facilitated are meeting the most urgent medical needs of the people. They are located in
Rapar. one of the worst affected pockets, initially for the first 15 days.
Oxfam India is also working towards the deployment of mental health experts and health workers to
respond to shock and mental trauma. We are working with specialist mental health institutes like
National Institute of Menial Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) to formulate a long-term psycho­
social intervention in the area. Oxfam India, along with NIMHANS have made similar interventions in
Kutch (1998) and in Orissa (1999) after the cyclones and the programme has helped to alleviate the
trauma of the affected people and has facilitated to get the rhythm of their life back.

We arc equally concerned and working towards to help people arrange temporary' shelter with our limited
resources. We have a highly effective network of our local NGO partners to reach out to the most
vulnerable and neglected people, mainly because of our work in the aftermath of the 1998 cyclone and
during droughts in the last two years. Oxfam India, in close co-ordination with the network of voluntary
organisations (such as Gujarat Janajagaran samithi, Samerthan, Medico Friend Circle etc) is facilitating
coordinated approach for relief and rehabilitation in the worst affected
area.

To highlight the plight of the survivors and their long-term misery and needs, Oxfam India is also issuing
regular situation-updates to the public and media.
We struggle for appropriate words to thank you for your concern. We highly appreciate your
humanitarian gesture and offer for financial assistance in these try ing times. In addition to funds, you
may also consider contributing in kind depending on the needs, which wre can communicate to you in the
coming days.
At present, we recommend only blankets and high-density polythene and tarpaulin sheets to make
temporary shelter for those left homeless by the killer earthquake. Past experience shows that it

will take at least more than six months to start rebuilding the shattered houses.

Our approach and plan
Oxfam India's response will be at three levels. Firstly, it has facilitated immediate relief for the most
needy. We have also facilitated a coordinated approach to ensure effective relief and rehabilitation of the
earthquake affected.

Secondly, we are working on a time bound programme- (a) immediate relief for the next 30 days: (b) 3
months to 1 year rehabilitation programme to deal with psycho-social consequences and physical
disability especially to deal with the needs of children, women and the elderly It may be mentioned here,
these three groups have to bear the brunt in any post disaster situation (c) long-term development work in
the area. This component will have disaster preparedness and response programme.
Oxfam India also works towards a national disaster management policy at the national level and state
level policies in the most vulnerable pockets. This will involve long-term advocacy and lobbying work at
various levels, mainly ordinary people and policy makers.

Please be reassured that your contributions will go a long a way to alleviate the sufferings of the
earthquake-affected people. We will take extra care to ensure that the resources are used properly.and
that too for the most needed and neglected. As in the past, we will retain a ven transparent and
accountable financial system for the whole earthquake response.
We hope our regular updates will help to fine tune our initiatives and your concerns.

If you need any further information or clarifications please call us on our office numbers 080-3692964:
3693274 or any one of these numbers
Sriramappa on 98451-78829:
Kalpana Rao Deswal on 98451-78814;
Dr.Unnikrishnan on 98450-91319
Lorraine on 98451-63757
We look forward to a fruitful collaboration for this initiative.

Thank you and with warm regards,

yours sincerely

Sriramappa
**********************************************************************

OXFAM INDIA WORKS TOWARDS AN EQUITABLE AND JUST SOCIETY FREE FROM
HUNGER,EXPLOITATION AND POVERTY BY FACILITATING PEOPLE-CENTRED,
RESPONSIVE,TRANSPARENT GOVERNANCE SYSTEMS, ENSURING BASIC RIGHTS AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.
%
**********************************************************************

Oxfam India is an Indian society registered under section 80-G of the income tax act and all
donations to Oxfam are subject to tax relief under this section

10

Are Earthquake Deaths
Overestimated?

Kutch as a whole has a low population
density. Second, unlike Latur in
Maharashtra, the time (8.46 am) al which
the earthquake struck in Gujarat has made
a significant difference. Most villagers
were awake and were even out of the
houses at that time. Once the tremors
started, many could come out of their
buildings before they collapsed. Third, the
There is some reason to believe that the number of earthquakesimple housing structures in the villages
helped even those trapped under debris to
related deaths in Kutch may be lower than the first estimates.
escape though with varying degree of
injuries. The impressions gathered also
II S Shylendra
the houses have collapsed with only a \ cry
suggest that those who died arc mostly
few structures able to withstand the trem­
aged, weak and infants who could not
he January 26carthquakc along with
ors. The villages are located within a radiusi
escape easily. Interestingly, the livestock
the large-scale devastation has cre­
of about 50 km from the epicentre, withi did not suffer any major loss unlike during
ated much confusion and contro­
Lodai village being the closest of all to•
the last year’s drought. Here again the
versy about the number of people who
the epicentre (2-3 km).
timing of the quake seems to have worked
have died on the day under the rubble. The
Given the sensitive nature, we exercised
to the advantage as most cattle were out
total number of deaths in Gujarat esti­
considerable care in examining the issue
of their sheds by that time for grazing.
mated by different sources vary from
of number of deaths that occurred on
Though there arc reports of deaths of
15,000 to even 1 lakh. The widespread
January 26 due to the quake. To our sur­
livestock the figures are much lower than
nature of the devastation and the delay in
prise, in all the villages people could clear I v
the human loss. In Lodai, the epicentre
clearing the debris especially in the major
give us information about the number <4
village, people reported deaths of 12
towns has made it really difficult to arrive
people who died in their villages. Jlw
animals and 23 people.
at any realistic estimation about the num­
information was largely confirmed b' t'
Anothei concern which has been belied
ber of deaths. While all the attention is
cross-checking done with more than
•
is the tear ol dead bodies rotting under
focused on major towns like Ahmedabad,
person. The number of deaths varied f i. -m
debris and spreading stench and diseases
Bhuj, Bachchau and Anjar there is no clear
just one in Mota Varnora to about 35 in
in the villages. In all the villages we vis­
information available about the extent of
Kukuma which is one of the biggest of
ited. the villagers have removed all the
loss of life in the villages, particularly in
the villages surveyed with an estimated
dead bodies and disposed them on the first
Kutch which has suffered major devasta­
population of about 3,062. The number of
day itself. Of course, in one village they
tion. There arc fears that the deaths in
deaths reported in the other villages are
said they have not been able to trace the
villages arc equally high and the final
as follows: Lakhond - 16. Kalitalawadi
body of only (me person. This is in contrast
figure may be a staggering one. Partly the
- 10, Chapreli - 6. Nana Warnora
2.
to a large number of bodies buried under
attempt to sensationalise the impact by
Lodai - 23, Dhancti - 4. Pashuda
5.
the debris for more than a week in the
some section of the media is also to be
Bimasar - 10, and Padana - 8. In nmie
towns, further given the relative lightness
blamed for the confusion.
of the villages there was a marginal varia­
of the materials used for construction, the
As a member of the National Dairy
tion in the figures given by different people.
villagers do not seem to have faced any
Development Board (NDDB)-led team
In those cases death figure on the higher
problem in removing the bodies from the
from Anand distributing milk and milk
side has been taken. The average number
debris. Moreover, most of the houses in
powder to quake hit people of Kutch, I
of deaths in the villages comes to about
these villages arc single-storeyed struc­
got an opportunity to tour in some of the
11. The Bhuj villages which are closer to
tures. The quantum of debris hence is
worst-affected villages. The insights gath­
the epicentre seem to have much higher
much lower in the case of rural houses
ered during the discussions we had with
deaths (average of 12) than Anjar villages
than in urban areas.
the affected people in these villages were
(average of 8) which arc relatively far
Based on the above understanding and
quite revealing in terms of the death sta­
away from the epicentre. A cursory analy­
clarity that was emerging with regard to
tistics. While so much confusion surrounds
sis shows that there is a clear relationship
the nature of deaths in the villages, I have
death statistics in the cities, surprisingly
between the number of deaths and the size
made an attempt to estimate the total
a clear picture was emerging from the
of the village; higher the population higher
possible
number of deaths in the villages
villages.
is the number of deaths implying a uni­
of Kutch district. The assessment made
' The rapid survey we did in one of the
form kind of an impact of quake at least
during the visits to the above villages
milk routes to assess the need for milk took
in these villages.
convinced me that one can arrive at a fairly
us to 11 villages in Bhuj and Anjar talukas.
The reported number of deaths partly
realistic estimation of the extent of deaths.
The villages covered included Kukuma,
belied our fears that the loss of life could
1 he estimations made below however are
Lakhond, Chapreli, Kalitalawadi, Mota
be also as high in the villages as it was
to be considered as only rough approxi­
Varnora, Nana Varnora, Lodai and Dhancti
estimated to be in towns. Two or three
mations till the actual figures are avail­
in Bhuj taluka, and Pashuda, Bimasarand
factors seem to have contributed for the
able. The purpose is only to reduce the
Padana in Anjar taluka. All these 1 1
relatively moderate number of deaths in
level of prevailing confusion about the
villages arc totally devastated. Almost all
the villages as compared to the hmiw.
deaths in Kutch.

Assessment for Kutcli Villages

722

I

■ '”(1 Political Weekly

March 3, 2001

If wc take the estimated population for
2001, the deaths in the surveyed villages
account for 0.62 per cent, i e, less than 1
per cent of the population. The 2001
population figures for the surveyed vil­
lages and for Kutch rural district were
arrived at using the 1981-91 rural popu­
lation growth rate. The villages surveyed,'
as mentioned earlier, are some of the worst
affected in the district. Not all the villages
in Kutch come under the worst affected
category. This implies that the overall
deaths in rural areas are bound to be less
than 0.62 per cent. Assuming that all the
villages (884) in Kutch have been affected
uniformly and the rate of death to be 0.62
per cent, the maximum possible deaths in
the villages would be around 6,100. Since
the damage is not uniform across different
talukas in Kutch, the actual number of
total deaths would be certainly less than
6,100. According to one assessment only
about 400 of the 884 villages are worst
affected. This is also partly confirmed by
our understanding based on the feedback
given by other team members that villages
to far west of Bhuj are relatively less

affected than those to the east and '"di
east.
Going by the reasons discussed jNiv?
for the extent of deaths, one can s dely
assume that the number and rate of deaths
in the villages, not as severely affected like
the surveyed villages, should be much less
than the rate in the worst affected villages.
By assuming a slightly lower death rate of
0.5 per cent, the total number of deaths
in rural areas of Kutch would come to
about 5,000. If the death rate is lower than
0.5 per cent, which I vouch for based on
the field insights, the total deaths would
be less than 5.000. Subject to any cxceptional villages with very high deaths and
any error in the population estimation, one
can put the actual range of deaths at 4.0005,000 for the Kutch villages; 4,000 being
the extent of deaths in the worst affected
villages. However it should be pointed out
that irrespective of the number of deaths
the devastation in the area is enormous.
The death debate should not undermine in
any way the urgent need for relief and
rehabilitation. TD

and Other ('ruel. Inhuman and Degrading
Treatment or Punishment, which it signed
in October 1997, but it then excuses the
government for its failure to implement it
by blaming its minions - the Indian police
and security forces-forthe violation of the
convention. The excuse is that no govern­
ment in India, however well-meaning it
might be, can ever control and train the
personnel of its vastly complicated net­
work of law-enforcement machinery ac­
cording to the guidelines of any human
rights manual. Go to any police station
with an FIR naming a suspect for even a
minor offence like theft, the officer-incharge will tell you that ‘third-degreemethods’ (the euphemism for torture) are
essential to make the suspect confess. Some
among these police personnel would pass
the buck on to their senior officers, or
political leaders, blaming them for putting
pressure on the police to solve a crime as
early as possible. This, they claim, forces
them to extort from the arrested person a
tailor-made confession that would help
them to nail the suspect. Thus, torture in
[The views expressed above are solely personal.}
custody although never acknowledged,
determines from behind the bars the legal
process of accusation and conviction of
the arrested, whether the latter is guiltv of
the crime or not.
'I he other view is that the government
itself lacks the political will to stop torture
in i usfodv. I h'c sanction, or even encour­
agement, ot sin h torture flows from the
The endemic practice of torture in police custody - which is makiny
higher echelons among the decision-mak­
India a pariah of sorts among civilised nations - can be held up as
ers and administrators. The latest incident
an example of our lasting adherence to tradition, both indigenous
involving a Bihar minister who tortured a
and colonial.
dal it employee, and managed to evade
arrest for days together till he himself
decided to surrender, orreports about senior
Sumanta Banerjee
were reported to them. The latest instance government officers torturing their
of such custodial killing was in Kashmir domestic help on suspicion of petty
Tn December last year, Amnesty Inter- in mid-February, where a medical shop­ offences, indicate the propensity towards
| national sent a note to the government owner Jaleel Ahmad was picked up one
corporal punishment that is widely preva­
-Lof India alleging torture and killing by day by security forces who handed over
lent among the powerful and the privileged
its police and security forces of individuals his bullet-riddled body to his family a few sections in India. True to the tradition of
held in their custody - a habit which has days later. Protest demonstrations in hypocrisy that rules our society, these
become pandemic among the minions of Kashmir against the custodial killing were people would pay lip service to human
law all over the country, making India a met by indiscriminate firing by security
rights in public, but in private would
pariah of sorts among civilised nations.
forces, resulting in further deaths. The defend torture on the ground that crimi­
Amnesty also sent a set of recommend­ impact of torture is no longer confined to nals arc tough nuts to crack and need to
ations for the prevention of such crimes.
the victims within the police lock-up. It be ‘broken down’.
Predictably, New Delhi has not yet pub­ is provoking mass protests, leading to
That torture or ill-treatment of prisoners
licly responded either to the allegations or massacres by a trigger-happy gang of tops, to mete out instant justice is becoming
the recommendations. But according to paramilitary forces and army personnel.
increasingly acceptable in society was
the government’s own official monitoring
There can be two ways of viewing the acknowledged some time ago by the
body, the National Human Rights Com­ situation. One is a charitable view, that government-appointed Police Reforms
mission (N| IRC), between 1999 and 2000,
believes that the Indian government is Committee, which submitted its report in
at least 1,143 deaths in custody (including sincerely committed to international coven­ October last. “A large section of people’’,
deaths in jails as well as police custody) ants like the Convention against loiture it said, “strongly believe that the police

Torture in Custody

Method in Sadistic Madness

Economic and Political Weekly

March 3, 2001

723

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of 2

\o
Some more info on Earthquake in Kutch - Gujarat

Subject: Some more info on Earthquake in Kutch - Gujarat
Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 11:36:26 +0530
From: Vijay Pratap <ritupriya@vsnl.com>
To: ritupriya@vsnl.com
Dear friends,
Here again we are forwarding you some more information on Gujarat Earthquake relief work.

Thanking you,
Kusum
For Vijay Pratap

From: "Thakker" <thakker@vsnl.com>
To: <ritupriya@vsnl.com>
Cc: <bidada@hotmail.com>, <anita@bom5.vsnl.in>
Subject: Earthquake in Kutch - Gujarat
Date: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 14:22:57 +0530

Date:
For
From :

10/02/2001
Vijay Pratap & Lokayan friends
Deepak Mepanl, Bidada, Bhuj/Mumbal

Dear Vijaybhai,

The Kutch quake situation demands every ounce of help from every corner of the world. And
fortunately this has been forth coming. But our efforts must be kept up till Kutch is back on its feet as
early as possible.
The Bidada Sarvodaya Trust (in association with Bhojay Sarvodaya Trust) is fully geared to meet the
situation in a fundamental area medical relief and rehabilitation with their full-fledged hospitals, the
only ones in this region.
Hence, I appeal to you to please approach all your contacts and resources to seek and secure help in
cash and kind. Please have them contact us as under for all coordination needs.
Mr. Deepak Mepani, Pandit Villa, Ground Floor, Third Gauthan, Near Chembur main Post
1)
office, Chembur, Mumbai 400 071.
Phone

E-mail

(R) 528 8258/5298748
(O) 200 8290/200 8550
thakker@vsnl.com

Mr. Babubhai Thakker, Trustee, Chandu Memorial Trust., 301-305, Jolly Bhavan No.1,
2)
10 New Marine Lines, Mumbai 400 020.
Tel. no.
200 8290/200 8550/200 3828
Fax
200 8290
E-mail
thakker@vsnl.com
3)
Mr. Liladhar Gada/Dipak Mepani, Maru Hospital, 286/B, Dr. Ambedkar Road, Off. Bharat
Mata Cinema, Near H.P. Petrol Pump, Pare!, Mumbai 400 012.

no.

414 6111/6112

J

2/19/01 4:30 PM

r Some more info on Earthquake in Kutch - Gujarat

E-mail

anita@bom5.vsnl.in or bidada@hotmail.com

The Trust enjoys both 100% Income tax exemption and FORA (Foreign Contribution
Regulation Act) Authorisation.

With your vast contacts of well wishers, both individual and corporate here and abroad, we
look up to you to mobilize substantial support. Any donor is welcome to visit us and see the work
being done.
I must add here for your information that we are now conceiving the quake relief in a totality of
its own and planning rehabilitation work comprehensively on a long term basis till all the affected ones
return to normal life as early as possible. We wish to tailor and undertake specific end-based
programmes to deal with cases of a) the physically paralysed and crippled; b) mentally affected who
need psychiatric help and c) Homeless and destitute covering the aspects of shelter, employment,
education and ongoing medical assistance.

5

I shall write shortly to you in greater details. But this is only to indicate that our work is not
temporary or adhoc but aimed to be comprehensive and lasting needing substantial and continuing
support from all.
With best regards,

MEPANI

I

2/19/01 4:30 P

\o
■DISASTER RELIEF
sheet or an asbestos sheet? It is clear that
the scheme for shelter has been drawn up
without taking into account the climate.
Every disaster brings in experts who
offer solutions that are not entirely suit-

To rebuild Kutch

A major challenge in the reconstruction of Kutch is to find solutions able. Most of the experts do not see the
■
. |
1 /
I
I
I
I
genius of indigenous construction techthat are suited to people s real needs and are easy to adopt.
niques. in the Kutch area, traditional
K bhungas, circular houses made of mud,
| grass and sticks, with a conical roof, have
o withstood the test of time and are testi3 mony to local skills and knowledge. In
< the quake-prone Himalayan Garhwal
y area in the Himalayas, traditional hous­
& es have withstood tremors.
£
The Abhiyan team, in consultation
with the District Collector, architects,
structural engineers and international
experts, has come out with a document
on shelter with a set ofguidelines that will
help avoid the mistakes committed in
Latur and Orissa.
Relocation is a major issue. People in
rural and semi-urban locations do not
wish to be relocated, being more com­
fortable and secure near their original
homes. The argument offered is that the
removal of debris is prohibitively expen­
sive. Shelter experts point out that the
Putting up dwellings in Bhuj. There is a need to take into account the climatic
infrastructure that needs to be put in
conditions while drawing up schemes to provide shelter.
place for a major relocation programme
rehabilitation policy. Many of those pre­ is even more expensive.
MARI MARCELTHEKAEKARA
Removal of debris can become the
sent were experts in relief work - they
in Bhuj
included those who had worked in Latur first component ofa shelter package. This
A /TONEY is not the problem. It has after the 1993 earthquake and in Orissa would provide work, and thus food, for
IV.Lpoured into Gujarat in an unprece­ and Gujarat after devastating cyclones hit the people. They would be engaged in
dented manner. The problem is how it the States. The international groups had reconstruction. Involvement in the
w*" be spent.
worked in Turkey, Bosnia and Rwanda. process of restarting life would help
he dust of the debris has not quite In short, they had seen it all.
relieve their trauma and give them con­
settled, but the people of Kutch, a strong,
The discussions covered issues that trol over their lives. After Latur, Anna
resilient community used to drought and needed immediate attention, such as shel­ Hazare, social worker, said: “Unplanned
famine in a hostile terrain, have begun ter, livelihood, environment, child pro­ flow of aid into the area has crushed the
tection, equity, health and, most spirit of self-help of the people of this
picking up the pieces.
In Bhuj, sitting in a small maidan important, the process of rehabilitation. region, and people in many villages have
under crudely pitched tarpaulin tents, the Understanding the importance of the taken to drinking.”
headquarters ofAbhiyan, a relief effort of process may be a slightly complex task,
The shelter document of Abhiyan
22 Kutch-based organisations started but it is crucial if development is to take states:
three years ago in the wake of a cyclone, place in a manner that is suitable and easy
“The process of rebuilding earth­
this writer was privy to innumerable dis- to adopt.
quake resistant houses should be demys­
The main concern is that the victims tified. It needs simple techniques which
w cussions on what needed to be done, how,
when and where. Abhiyan was the most should get the kind of houses and reha­ people are more than capable of handling.
organised group in the area, and District bilitation programmes that they want and The process should be informed by a larg­
Collector Anil Mukim made it a point to that will work. For instance, take the issue er vision of building self-reliant and sus­
join the meetings held at 9 a.m. every day. of shelter. State governments and well- tainable communities. The process of
The meetings were attended by a host of meaning groups have rushed thousands reconstruction is not merely one of
disaster relief and donor agencies from of asbestos sheets and corrugated tin rebuilding houses but of rebuilding the
different parts of the world - the United sheets to the earthquake-affected areas. lives and communities of the people of
Nations, the World Bank, non-govern­ Already it is unbearably hot in Gujarat Kutch. Local communities must have a
mental organisations, and so on. during the day. By April, temperatures stake and a sense of ownership in the
Together they tried to formulate plans will soar and by May and June, it will be process of rebuilding Kutch, and emerge
and strategies to put in place an effective over 48 C. Who can survive under a tin from this crisis with a sense of dignity,
<

FRONTLINE, APRIL 27, 2001

•

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*

•

75

M|| of Save The Children (STC)
observed that the people of
552 Bhuj, Anjar and Rapar were
insistent that there was no
child in the areas without
someone to take care of it.
This community does not
give its children away, say the
people of Kutch. Uncles,
aunts, grandparents, cousins
and so on make up a protec­
tive clanship. The govern­
ment of India, being aware of
the dangers of hasty adop­
tions, has announced a mora­
torium on adoptions and
|
stopped children from being
taken out of the district. STC
and the Abhiyan have cr
nr* nrmirnrr^*” r\r*i
for a ““no
orphanage” pou^ .
They believe that as far as
possible orphaned children
should not be moved away
from areas where they had
their homes. On the other
hand, there is the fear that
some relatives may opt for
the guardianship of minors
in anticipation of any com­
There is a plethora of agencies, organisations and groups that have been working on disaster
pensation from the govern­
relief in Gujarat, but there is a need to coordinate the work with the aid of a coherent plan.
ment.
The question of orphaned children’s
self-reliance and self-respect.
as a school and a panchayat office. Where
“The reconstruction project must the community is in a state of prepared­ inheritance also needs to be looked at. On
have a multiplier effect on the economy ness to undertake reconstruction, pilot no account should sibling orphans be sep­
of Kutch. Importing pre-fabricated projects could take up entire villages. If arated.
Adoption queries have been pouring
materials would be a quick-fix solution the people are involved in the design and
but may prove costly in the long run since construction of their new homes, they are in. The question is: “Whose need is adop­
it would enrich outside economies at the likely to overcome the fear and trauma tion - the parents’ or the child’s?” STC
caused by the earthquake. Abhiyan pro­ believes the child’s need comes first.
cost of the local one.”
The use of local materials is impera­ poses to create model sub-centre struc­ Children affected by the earthquake will
still be in a state of shock and me
tive because they are the only sustainable tures at 27 locations in the district.
medium. They would be available for
The document points out that reha­ them out of their familiar environment
upkeep, repairs and maintenance. The bilitation provides an opportunity to will not help. Restarting schools is a pri­
people should not become dependent on upgrade and improve on the infrastruc­ ority on the government agenda. There
outside sources for their basic building ture and the village layout that existed have been discussions on putting up com­
materials.
before the earthquake. Drinking water munity structures on an emergency basis
Another imperative ofthe shelter pol­ could be a part of the shelter package. It for schools, hospitals, and so on. Getting
icy is that masons, carpenters, artisans can also provide an opportunity to regu­ back to school might help children come
and other skilled workers must be trained larise land tides, issue legal pattas to land­ to terms with their situation.
The Health Department has been
in building earthquake-resistant struc­ less farmers and remove illegal
tures. T. Krishna, an architect, said: encroachments. Grazing lands could be flooded with offers of support. The pri­
“Earthquake resistance techniques are developed, afforestation taken up and ority is to get the workable hospitals going
in the affected areas. In the immediate
essentially very simple techniques that dams repaired.
any rural community can understand and
The main premise around which aftermath of the earthquake a large num­
grasp quickly.”
housing is to take shape is that “one struc­ ber of doctors rushed to Bhuj and worked
The policy document points out that turally sound room as a semi-permanent under gruelling conditions for long
work on pilot projects using a range of structure should be built in the same loca­ hours. The need now is for a follow-up
designs, building materials and tech­ tion where the original house stood, to on their work. Artificial limbs and
nologies should begin quickly so that which later additions may be made.” This orthopaedic and physiotherapy special­
communities may see the possibilities on is the best way to combine medium- and ists will be needed to take care of the
injured. Many of the disabled will need
offer and choose the most suitable one. long-term shelter requirements.
The policy on child protection is of not just medical care but also long-term
The pilot projects may start with the
building of community structures, such paramount importance. Neeraja Phatak support and rehabilitation.

IW

76

FRONTLINE, APRIL 27, 2001

Long-term trauma counselling is also
necessary. In Orissa, ActionAid invited
the National Institute of Mental Health
and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS),
Bangalore, to train a cadre of barefoot
counsellors from the community who can
take care of the victims who were in a state
of shock or depression. A series of man­
uals brought out by NIMHANS on trau­
ma and counselling are being adapted and
translated into Gujarati by the National
Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.
f | ’HE
Self-Employed
Women’s
JL Association (SEWA), a well-known
women’s cooperative in Gujarat, has
begun work on producing livelihood kits
for craftspeople who have lost their equipit. With about 60,000 members,
has a sound network throughout
the State. Apart from craftspeople, shep­
herds and herdsmen are in distress
because Kutch was reeling under drought
even before the earthquake occurred.
Fodder and water are urgently needed for
their animals. But the most pitiable
plight is that of salt-pan workers.
Predominantly Dalits and Muslims, they
are in near bondage to salt traders. Even
the pittance they used to earn in the salt
pans has now stopped. When they deal
with these groups, the government and
the NGOs should go beyond mere reha­
bilitation, bearing in mind the exploita­
tive conditions in which they lived in the
pre-earthquake days.
A few thousand migrant workers
from poorer States live in conditions of
bondage and exploitation. When many
o^hem died in the cyclone that hit Kutch
year, the bodies were disposed of by
their masters without proper identifica­
tion and without informing their rela­
tives. Migrants need special attention. As
most of them do not have any papers that
help establish their identity, they are
often not eligible for any kind of aid.
There have been instances of bureaucrats
demanding proof of identity from people
who lost everything in the earthquake.
Intelligent, sensitive officials need to be
deployed, to cut through the red tape and
reach out to the needy.
Kutch is a fragile ecosystem, a unique
one. It has a special kind of soil, which
produces grass that supports its sparse
population of birds and animals. A com­
munity of nomadic herdspeople moves
around in its distinctive, jaunty attire,
feeding cattle, goats and sheep.
Local people say that the Indian
Army, in an attempt to prevent infiltra­
tion from Pakistan, planted a thorny
FRONTLINE, APRIL 27, 2001

shrub along the border, which has spread
alarmingly and threatens to wipe out the
indigei■nous species of grass. This has
reduced the natural fodder available to
_ mous cattle.
the hardy, indigei
It is in this context that the question
of afforestation assumes importance.
Nikhilesh, a young volunteer from the
National Tree Growers Federation, said:
“If we’re starting from scratch, we may as
well get it right.” Any afforestation pro­
gramme should be taken up keeping in
view the fragile ecosystem of the Rann.
In its strategy paper, ActionAid India
has raised certain other issues as well. On
the basis of its experience in Orissa, it has
noted that women and the aged are vulnerable groups. In a patriarchal society,

women are often physically or sexually
abused and their inheritance is usurped
by powerful older men in the clan.
ActionAid proposes to deal with this and
other issues by attempting to create Sneha
Samudayas, that is, community-based
rehabilitation programmes for vulnerable
groups such as widows, their children, the
aged and the disabled. They will also form
Asha Samudayas, or “communities of
hope”, under which people from local
communities will be trained to help the
affected cope with the trauma and rekin­
dle their hope in the community.
Samudaya ka Adhikar groups will help
survivors assert their rights and insist on
transparency, accountability and infor­
mation. Local people will be trained as

Structural questions
MARI MARCEL THEKAEKARA
T^\ELHI is sitting on the ridge
and could collapse if there is an
earthquake. There has been no pre­
paredness for an earthquake of this
dimension in any of our cities,” said T.
Krishna, a Gudalur-based architect,
and Yogananda, a structural engineer
from Bangalore. The two were in
Khavda, close to the epicentre of the
quake, on the fateful morning of
January 26. “It was a cold morning and
we were outside, freezing, when the
ground began to shake. It was the most
frightening experience of my life,”
Krishna recalled. “Six of us held on
tightly to each other. We couldn’t
stand upright. It seemed as if the
ground would open up and swallow
us.” One of them was Meena of the
Abhiyan team who learnt later that her
mother had been buried in the rubble
in Bhuj town.
This writer accompanied Krishna
and Yogananda through a tour of the
debris-filled Bhuj. They examined
each building technically. “Finally,”
they explained, “you can’t come to any
conclusion. On one side of a street
every building is standing and on the
other side every single one has col­
lapsed. It is probably owing to the
intensity of the shock and the pattern
or path the tremor travelled. Some
buildings are definitely substandard.
But some prefabricated structures,
which ought to have survived, have col­

lapsed. All in all, no one was prepared
architecturally for this kind of a shock.
Seismic zoning is not at all scientific.
They are relying on pre-Independence
data to predict quakes. Often they
declare an area earthquake-prone after
the event.”
Yogananda and Krishna directed
this writer to Professor Jagadish of the
Indian Institute of Science, who has
been working on earthquake-proof
solutions. Jagadish said: “The two
essential components for earthquake
proofing are connectivity and ductility. Concrete, brick and stone masonry
have poor ductility. They need small
amounts of ductile materials such as
bamboo, timber or steel in a strategic
combination to enhance the connectivity and ductility of buildings. The
rehabilitation process can use the materials of the fallen buildings with appro­
priate design modifications to produce
ductility and connectivity for safe
structures.”
Krishna said: “We (India) had brilliant design ideas and aesthetics. But
from the 1950s we gave it all up in the
rush to be modern. We aped even
expensive Russian buildings of con­
crete and steel, which are climactically
and economically unsuitable for India.
Concrete houses proved to be death
traps. There has been a trend in archi­
tecture to move back to suitable, effec­
tive, local, low-cost buildings,
incorporating traditional design.
Hopefully we’d have learnt some
lessons from this disaster.” ■

T1

From Guclalur to Gujarat
MARI MARCEL THEKAEKARA
' | ’HE Adivasi Munnetra Sangam
JL (AMS) is an organisation of tribal
people based in Gudalur, Tamil Nadu,
struggling for land rights and equity
since its inception in the late 1980s
{Frontline, January 7, 1989) Moved by
television images of death and destruc­
tion, many Adivasis of Gudalur volun­
teered to go to Gujarat for relief work.
“For years people, strangers from India,
Germany, the United Kingdom, the
United States and Europe, have helped

us. Now maybe we can help someone
who is more in need ofhelp than we are.
We do not have money to give but we
can give free manual labour.”
The government had dumped
thousands of tonnes of bamboo in
Kutch. The people of the region have
no knowledge of bamboo craft.
Krishna, an architect belonging to
ACCORD, a voluntary agency based in
Gudalur, called from Bhuj asking for
help. Five young persons well-versed
with working on bamboo and skilled in
making soil cement blocks - Maran,

Chandran, Balu, Arumugam and
Chandru - left for Bhuj along with
ACCORD members Manoharan and
Durga. They were cautioned that the
food and weather would be different,
but nothing would deter them. Krishna
reported from Bhuj that the team
offered to work day and night so that as
many structures as possible could be put
up. Its members were excited that their
skills could be of use to people ofanoth­
er community in distress.
Another group of 100 young
Adivasi volunteers, all daily wage earn­
ers, are waiting to go to Bhuj. They have
nothing to offer except their love and
labour for the people of Bhuj. ■

RWKS.

alii

fa"
i. ■

/
j

r

Traditional Adivasi houses, which generally stood up to the disaster.
Sneha Karmis to give legal advice to vil­
lagers on their rights and to protect vul­
nerable groups. Sneha Committees will
be set up to protect the long-term inter­
ests of women, children and the disabled.
There is a plethora of well-meaning
NGOs, donor agencies, commercial
groups and religious groups working in
Gujarat. A great deal could be achieved if
they are brought together by the govern­
ment with a coherent development plan.
An innovative idea ofActionAid is to
run a campaign through posters, pam­
phlets, village meetings, folk theatre and
so on to spread information on various
government schemes. Redress mecha­
nisms must be in place so that people are
78

aware of what is happening to the money
meant for them. A special communica­
tion package
ge on women’s rights will be
evolved shortly.
“Equity” is a sensitive issue. Martin
Macwan, a Dalit leader, wryly observed.
“Nature is a great leveller, but even in a
disaster they will discriminate in rebuild­
ing society.” Dalits, Adivasis and
Muslims, disabled people, single women
and orphaned children are the worst
affected in a disaster and they must be
compensated fairly and justly. The only
way to achieve this is for people who fight
for the rights of the minorities and other
vulnerable groups to form watchdog
committees and demand fairplay, trans-

patency and accountability. People who
donate money should form pressure
groups to fight for equity. The media
have a role too. It will be a hard battle.
Anyone who is prepared to fight this
battle should perhaps remember
Mahatma Gandhi’s words: “Recall the
face of the poorest and most helpless per­
son whom you may have seen. Ask your­
self if the step you contemplate is going
to be of any use to him. Will it restore to
him the control over his own life and des­
tiny? In other words, will it lead to swaraj
or self-rule for the hungry and spiritual­
ly starved millions of your countrymen?
Then you will find your doubts and your
Self melting away.”
FRONTLINE, APRIL 27, 2001

f

Epidemics as Disaster; Epidemics following disasters

A

(Public Health System)

v

1) Introduction
2) History
3) Extent: geographical; intensity
extent of human lives lost (mortality)
extent of human lives affected (morbidity)
acute/chronic diseases
consequences.

4) Causes of the Epidemics - pandemics
Impact: economic
social
development
Focus groups: poor, gender, children, Dalits, migrants
(internal; external) ■ —-------- -

6) Responses : Government: Central, State, District
Non-Govemment: Local, National, International
Aid agencies : bilateral, multilateral, others
Commdjhty
Media
Researchers
Policy makers ; politicians
Drug issues ; diagnosis ; treatment; surveillance ; control and eradication
Innovative approaches in response, in partnership building, capacity building,
seminars/workshops, rehabilitation (long term).
Publications ; Debates (policy, parliament, etc); Legislation ; Court Orders.
Quarantine
Panic responses
International responses
Epidemic preparedness
7) Other issues (miscellaneous)
^) Conclusions
SWOT analysis
Recommendations

Epidemics as disasters ; epidemics following disasters

Interview : Questions
(Proceed in a natural way from the answers. Do not be rigid in sticking to the questions)

1) What have been the major epidemics in the country?
Have you been involved in epidemics (practically or intellectually or emotionally)?
2) what has been the magnitude (extent) of the epidemic?

3) How did it affect the people? Focus on the poor, women, children, elderly, Dalits.
4) What was the impact on the social and economic aspects?

5) What was the response? by the people, by-the-people, by the Government, NGOs^and
others?
6) What do you think should be done (the response - short term and long term)?
7

Other remarks and observations.

i o,

GUJARAT EARTHQUAKE : HEALING THE WOUND:2
I^^^OXFAM INDIA’S INTERVENTIONSK/' £
“A mission to put people back on their feet”:
Community Based Rehabilitation of physically challenged / disabled people.
Introduction:
The devastating earthquake in Gujarat in
January 2001 is one of the worst disasters in
India’s history. Many were left injured
critically and “disabled". With spine, pelvic
and lower limb injuries dominating incidents
of fracture and a sizeable number of
amputees and paraplegics, it is a daunting
task to provide care and assistance at the
community level.

Oxfam India's innovative response to
Gujarat earthquake has been operational
from March third week onwards to reach out
to the people at their doorstep. In
collaboration with the Indian Association of
Physiotherapists and other collaborating
agencies and
mostly,
the affected
community, three base stations (to cover
around 200villages) have been establishedat Anjar, Bhuj and Morbi. There is a team of
two physiotherapists, a social worker and
other logisticians at each of these centres. In
addition to this, four experienced and senior
physiotherapists are coming from Bombay
for 3 days a week. Community helpers from
the community are currently being recruited.

Oxfam India believes that “this is a mission
to put people back on their feet". A visionary
approach- the programme aims primarily to
reach out to the community and the affected
disabled people at their door step, keeping
in mind that these are people who are no
longer in a position to move around, most of
them having multiple fractures, mainly of the
lower limb, pelvis and spine. Lack of medical
records in many places is hampering follow
up care. To correct the situation, Oxfam
India has pressed the services of a mobile X
ray unit for, mainly for the villages were it is
working, but also will be available for other
patients and organisations. The model that
Oxfam India has developed with I.A.P. is
replicable,
and some agencies are
considering this model that will be taken up
in other villages. Advocacy and lobbying,
both with policy makers and in the media
continue. Realising the fact that disability is
a missing agenda in disaster situations
today, lobbying and advocacy work to place
this as an agenda will continue.

The financial support for this programme
comes from the employees of WIPRO.

Oxfam India

Oxfam India
“ Vijaya Shree", 4th A Main
Near Baptist Hospital
Off Hebbal, Bangalore-24, INDIA
Ph; 91 (80) 363 2964 & 363 3274
Fax: 91 (80) 391 4508 (PP)
E-mail: oxfamindiag)vsnl.com
Wohcutp- \aaaam nvfamindia nrn

l^Sxfam India
Ttord:n ?•'

Gujarat Earthquake Field Office
I Floor, Manav Chambers,
(Opp) Kenia Hospital, Varsamedi Road
Anjar- 370 110; Gujarat, I^DIA
Ph: 91 (2836) 45798
Mobile: 91 (0) 98251 90583
Fax: 91 (2836) 43008 (pp)

i

I \

v

0kN UPDATE on activities (Q1" July, 2001):
(1) Project survey to identify the cases and analyse the situation has been completed way
back in April last week. This was happening simultaneously along with the intervention
that was happening in some villages. Over 1256 individual cases, including around 60
paraplegics, have been identified in over 200 villages through this process and
subsequent field visits.
Future action: The survey report will be cross-checked during the mid term review.
(2) Co-ordination office and Base stations to implement this programme and field
based activities: One multi-purpose office that will serve as a co-ordination office for the
entire programme as well as a base station has been operational at Anjar from mid
March onwards. Another base station has been set up at Bhuj from April mid onwards.
We also have arrangements at Morbi to carryout the activities in and around Morbi. We
are reaching out to the people in over 200 villages through this intervention. We have
been providing community based services to 1256 survivors out of which 833 people
don’t need intensive care any more. There are over 36 paraplegics who are receiving our
services.
HR / TEAM : In each of these base stations, we have a team comprising of two
physiotherapists, one social worker, driver/s, logisticians and care takers. There is one xray technician to take care of the mobile x-ray unit. (Volunteers that Oxfam India
mobilised have also been supporting the intervention). Moreover, every week for a period
of three days, a team of 3 to 5 experienced and senior physiotherapists are coming from
various hospitals in Bombay and Gujarat. This team has been mobilised by the Indian
Association of Physiotherapists who has an “exclusive" understanding with Oxfam India.
Moreover, around 30 people have been identified through community meetings from the
villages where we are working. Some of these community helpers are working full time
and some of them part-time, in villages to do the follow-up work. It may be noted here
that these people come from various background and their skills are being synergised for
the best results.
Oxfam India’s professionals from the head office at Bangalore continue to direct the
programme and make periodic visits to the area. The last visit was undertaken from July
2nd to 8th.

Infrastructure: The field offices also have communication and computing facilities. There
is a jeep (one Tata Sumo / one Toyota Qualls) and other logistical and infrastructural
arrangements in each of these field offices. Needless to say, as this Community Based
Programme actually takes place in the villages, the professional team sets off to the
villages by morning and come back late in the evening/ night depending upon the case
load.
Future action: The programme will continue as scheduled and village visits will take
place uninterrupted.

(3) Mobile X- Ray, Ambulance unit and corrective surgery: The mobile X-ray unit was
launched on May 13th at Sukhpar, a village near Bhuj by Dr. D. Dastoor, President of
Indian Association of Physiotherapists. The mobile X-Ray unit is located in a Tempo
Traveller that also serves as an ambulance. It is in this ambulance patients (referral) are
often taken to hospitals for a detailed medical check-up, screening for surgery, corrective
surgical operations and to fix artificial limbs. This ambulance has also been used to
transport patients (not earthquake related) in emergency cases to ICU units located in
nearby towns.

2

Over 60 x-rays were taken initially. The X-ray reports have been helpful to identify those
who need corrective surgery. A leading Radiologist from Mumbai has examined these xrays in July first week. Some need repetition.

2 people have been taken for corrective surgery till July first week.

Future action: The mobile x-ray unit and the ambulance will continue to be used for
follow-up examination. X-rays those need repitition will be updated by July second week
to enable the orthopaedic surgeons to conduct a diagnostic camp. The orthopaedic camp
is scheduled tentatively for the third week of July.
Moreover, this unit will be made available to other agencies working in other affected
villages. NGOs working on public health issues have found high prevalence of
tuberculosis amongst the survivors (need not necessarily be earthquake induced) in
certain pockets. They are organising a health camp and thereafter a health programme to
address this issue. The mobile x-ray unit may be used for the screening programme and
this may be done without hampering our prime activity.

(4) Provision of artificial limbs, equipments like crutches and wheel chairs :
These needs are met on a case-to-case basis and as per the felt need. Altogether, over
25 people have been provided with artificial limbs, over 5 people have been given
crutches and other mobility appliances, 2 were given wheel chairs and tricycles. This
activity is undertaken in collaboration with PNR society, specialist agency based in
Gujarat.

Future action: We may continue this as and where it is required.
(5) Health care center for paraplegics:
The onset of monsoon has thrown us a challenge- the bedsore that is bothering
paraplegics is a pressing concern. We are just setting up a temporary health care center
for paraplegics where over 20 paraplegics, who have shown interest, will be moved for
advanced medical/ health care for the next 3 to 9 months.
Future action: The long-term plight of the paraplegics is a major concern. Oxfam India
is committed to respond to their needs. We are putting a multidisciplinary team that
comprises of rehabilitation specialists, physiotherapists and livelihood/income generation
programme people to make a realistic assessment and suggest long term rehabilitation
plans. The team may conduct field visit and feasibility study in August / September.

(6) Documentation: A professional documentationalist, with periodic support from students
and other volunteers, have been documenting the intervention process and the external
environment from April onwards. (Please see annexure for the documentation on the
paraplegics). A video camera has been placed in the area and efforts are going on to
document the intervention, the improvement in patients etc. This footage may facilitate
documentaries on this issue. “ The news you missed”, a compilation of press clippings
of the first three months, is being published in collaboration with the development
resource Centre, Mumbai and Institute of Social Research and Development,
Ahmedabad and has been circulated. Photo documentation also continues.

Future action: The documentation work will continue on a regular basis. The compilation
of press clippings also will continue.

(7) Printing of records and education materials : Records have been printed. Educational
materials, especially focusing the care of paraplegics and amputees is under production.
It will be ready by July last week.

Future action: The educational materials to sensitise the families and orient the
practitioners and planners will be circulated widely from July onwards. Efforts will be put
to place it in local newspapers and other periodicals. We may put efforts to hold a photo
exhibition in January 2002.

(8) Co-ordination and networking with local, national level and international agencies
and the government: Oxfam India has left its footprint on the larger canvas. The
organization is in regular touch with local community based organizations and national
agencies. We are also very much in touch with the government, academic institutions,
the media and international agencies. The Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai has
collaborated and it may be continued in future as well. Some of our updates, newsletter
and other communication material have been circulated through national and
international e-groups, United Nations and other international web sites.

Future action: This will intensify in the coming months.
(9) Advocacy, lobbying and policy making work: Efforts have been put to advocate
rational policies, lobby this theme at the parliament and policy making level. Numerous
interviews were given to the general media and special health/ medical/ corporate
magazines like the Lancet, Reuters Health, Overseas Development Agency Newsletter,
CIO etc. Oxfam’s opinions have been highlighted widely in the TV and electronic media
as well. A 24-minute interview in a leading Indian TV Channel on the Gujarat intervention
in specific and humanitarian issues in general have been telecasted in May 2001.
We have lobbied to place physical disability as an agenda for the Indian People’s
Tribunal who is expected to visit Gujarat in August second week.
Future action: Efforts are made to publish scientific papers in academic journals and
present papers in national and international seminars. Dr. Dastoor, President of Indian
Association of Physiotherapists will be highlighting the details of this intervention at the
Asia Pacific conference of physiotherapists at Singapore in July last week. Papers about
our intervention and their results will be presented in other seminars as well.

An international workshop is scheduled between Jan and May 2002. Opinion articles are
expected to appear in leading newspapers and TV networks in the coming days.
(10)Advisory committee, mid term review and evaluation: The suggested advisory
committee includes eminent persons like David Werner, Prof. Ali Baquer, Dr. CM Francis
etc. However, apart from individual consultations, the committee has not attained a
formal structure yet. A review is suggested in October. The advisory team is likely to give
a critique of the programme after this. Evaluation is planned in March 2002.
Future action: We will be putting efforts to energise and formalise this committee.

Apart from the physical
seal disability intervention, Oxfam Indiai
India’s mtervenbons
interventions to
respond to the psychosocial needs (undertaken in collaboration with the
National institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore and Basic
Rights Programme (undertaken in collaboration with Indian Centre for Human
Rights, Mumbai) and other agencies is picking up momentunfe
unni/ 9 july 2001/

4

J/eA -10-

4

OY

VOICES FROM A DISASTER is about the plight of the
earthquake survivors in Gujarat. Voices that call for urgent attention...

LU

in
<

cn

"The officers treat us like animals because we are illiterates. Despite
such treatment, I am trying to get the required documents. I'Ve are
emotionally drained. Yet they insisted on police certificates. But my
son didn't die in an accident for them to be asking for these
certificates. He died due to chest injuries after suffering for four
days. The medical team from outside treated him. But they didn't
issue any certificates. Where can we get them from?" Umarbhai
Ghoda (60), Kutch.

Q A devastating earthquake left thousands dead in the western In­

GO
LU

dian state of Gujarat in January 2001. It left a long trail of mor­
tality and morbidity...Eight months after the devastating earth­
quake, the plight of people like Umarbhai and many others readj
like an unending tragedy. Official apathy, unclear policies, dis­
crimination and above all disrespect and disregard for human
lives compound their misery. Survivors and voluntary agencies work­
ing in the area complain about lack of transparency and account­
ability of the system. Claiming rights and entitlements is difficult
because appropriate information is inaccessible. Many of the sur­
vivors feel that this is just the beginning of a long and endless
tragedy.

The Indian Peoples' Tribunal assisted by a panel of experts work­
ing on critical issues related to disasters like health, shelter, dis­
ability, human rights, disaster management etc. visited the earth­
quake-affected areas during August. The visit was organised and
facilitated by numerous community based organisations and vol­
untary agencies. The survivors raised their concerns and griev­

ances during a series of public hearings.

Duration: 28 minutes
Language: Gujarati and English
Direction: KP Sasi
Facilitated by: Indian People’s Tribunal and Oxfam India
This film is made possible from the contributions received from the Indian Public by Oxfam India.

MS— P

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Blpoal teftimqnv - yrcent

Subject: Bhopal testimony - urgent
Vate: Sun, 25 Nov 200114:46:48"+0000 “
Ftom: pamzinkin <pamzinkin@gn.apc.org>
JCn: .mii3ushi.v^@vahnnjnnni juxchac^vsnl xnm
Dear Mira and Ravi
I have managed to get all the testimonies together at last and am about to
pass them to Sarah Sexton as agreed at the recent GK meeting.
Rebeca Zuniga typed up the Bhopal one from a photocopy of the original
testimony. I also have a copy. We were unable to read some of it so would
be glad if you could either
a)read this and let me know if it is OK (I have out the very doubtful words
in italics)) as soon as you can Thus would be the quickest.
or b) communicate with Satya and see if she can correct it. We can’t alter
it as it was testimony publicly presented but we do want it to be as
accurate as possible.
It is urgent as we wanted to get the stories out as soon as we can (this year)
Thanks
Pom

Pam

Pam Zinkin
pam a Ink 1h (*g «. ape. a t g
45 Anson Road
London N7 OAR

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1

DOCTORS AND PEDIATRICIANS REQUIRED

We are just back from our assessment visit to the earthquake affected areas.
We were in Bhuj and we were informed by "Abhiyan” that they are setting up
over 23 "health/vigilance "centres.

Each centre will be the base from where health issues will be taken care.
Individual medical care and preventive and promotive care will be the focus.
Each such centre will be run by a three member team that consists 3 of the following
professionals :
(1) General physician
(2) Gynecologist
(3) Community medicine expert
(4) Pediatrician
(4) Nurse
(5) Lab technician
Abhiyan needs support from the Bangalore group. Will it be possible for the Bangalore
Response or any one here in Bangalore to mobilize upto 5 teams who could work in the
above mentioned centres for the next three months starting from next week
(Feb 26th onwards).

1) The three member team may comprise of any of the three professionals out the above
mentioned five.
2) Only Hindi speaking people are required.
3) Each team may have to spend atleast one month continuously.

Ps: These centres may be endorsed by the government as their referral centres.
They are awaiting conformation.

Message from Dr. P. V.Unnikrishnan (OXFAM) 19 Feb 2001

GUJARAT SHATTERED BY A KILLER EARTHQUAKE:

Long-term rehabilitation is a challenge for the survivors and the humanitarian agencies.

OXFAM INDIAN LONG TERM INTERVENTION STRATEGY AND PROGRAMME
(Strategy note dated Feb 15th).

Responding to the immediate relief needs of the earthquake-devastated people in Gujarat was/ is
a daunting task for relief agencies and the government. The first two weeks witnessed
overwhelming relief assistance. However, we also found how some remote places were neglected.
The scene is changing fast.
Oxfam India responded to some of the very basic survival needs like food, warm clothes,
temporary shelter and specialised medical assistance in some of the neglected pockets. It also
facilitated the organisation of response in Bangalore and Mumbai. It also highlighted critical issues
in the media to facilitate appropriate relief and advocate humane policy directives.
RAPID NEED ASSESSMENT BY A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY PROFESSIONAL TEAM:
Oxfam India also put together a multi-disciplinary team to conduct a rapid need assessment
of the earthquake-affected areas to develop our long-term interventions strategy.
The multidisciplinary comprised of
•
•

•
•

•

Dr. Jacob VC, Mumbai. He is lead physiotherapist and Vice President of Indian
Association of Physiotherapists. He has experience of working in Latur.
Mr. Santosh Kalyane, Latur. He is an engineer and development resource
person who has worked with communities and women's groups. He is associated
with Swayam Sikshan Prayog, an organisation working in Latur for the last 7
years.
Mr. Gabriel Britto, Mumbai. He is a social scientist and is also the director of
Development Resource Centre.
Ms. Philomina Christi,Ahmedabad. She is a gender activist associated with St.
Xavier’s Social Service Society. She has worked on gender, rights and dalits
issues.
Dr. Unnikrishnan PV, Bangalore. He is Oxfam India’s co-ordinator for Disasters
& Emergencies. He is a medical doctor working on health and humanitarian
issues, both at the policy and field implementation levels.

Note-1: Inputs from a specialist mental health team from National Institute of Mental
Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore and other experts who are currently in the area
are also incorporated in this note.
Note-2: Inputs of the teams from Swayam Sikshan Prayog, Mumbai; Peoples’ Science
Institute, Dehradun and Anandi, Bhavnagar are also incorporated especially on
sections related to reconstruction, information dissemination and exchange programmes.

I

METHODOLOGY:

The team visited the affected areas and hospitals in Ahmedabad; remote and other villages; spots
where the disaster affected displaced people are located at present, make shift health centres and
relief tents. The team also had extensive interviews, interactions and focussed group discussions
with affected people- mainly women, children, elderly, ignored sections of the community and other
vulnerable groups such as migrants, dalits, minorities; NGOs and international agencies,
government, army, medical and health experts, and others working in the area.

8
THE RAPID ASSESSMENT SUGGESTS THE FOLLOWING INTERVENTIONS.
(FOR DETAILS, PLEASE READ THE FULL REPORT)!

One: Interventions to provide Community Based Rehabilitation for the disabled.
Paraplegics and those with limb, multiple and spine injuries, fractures and other disabilities will
need physiotherapy assistance to get their lives back into action. Without this intervention and
assistance of physiotherapists, the paraplegics and the like will end up their lives in wheel chairs.
This service may be required for the next 6 to 12 months and that too at the doorsteps of the needy
people as they are immobile and can’t commute to hospitals.
This is not a visible agenda for NGOs and government at this stage. Even after 8 years, there are
over 20 paraplegics still awaiting rehabilitation in Latur, where a killer earthquake
(of a less devastation) struck in 1993.

I/Ve need to act fast. Oxfam India is committed to take up this challenge and is finalising a
work plan in collaboration with the experts associated with the Indian Association of
Physiotherapists. We are also working out the details of setting up a rehabilitation centre at
Ahmedabad in association with St. Xavier’s Social Service Society, Ahmedabad.

Two: Intervention to provide psychosocial support for the earthquake affected people who
are under shock and trauma. Left unattended initial trauma develops into manifestations that have
a long lasting negative impact. School children drop out, increased incidents of divorce; alcoholism
and even suicides are some of the manifestations. Moreover, Post Trauma Stress Disorder is
common amongst disaster-affected people. Oxfam India’s assessment also confirms the increased
incidence of premature deliveries in the area.

There are a considerable number of children who have been affected. A specific case is of a 12
year young Nancy Takkar (from Anjar), the only survivor when the killer quake killed over 300 of
her schoolmates. She is seen smiling and doing routine regular work! Mental health professionals
who have been assessing the psychosocial implications reiterate that her smile is a short-lived
phenomenon. They say that she is passing through what is known as the “heroic phase". The
survivors need assistance to overcome the trauma and psychosocial problems they face.

The assessment and observations by expert and experienced mental health professionals call for a
long- term psychosocial intervention for the disaster affected. This service may be required for the
next 6 to 12 months and that too at the community level. This is not a visible agenda for NGOs and
government at this stage, especially in some of the remote and anot-so publicized11 villages. Even
after 8 years, in Latur, the incidence of mental health problems is upto 30 % according to recent
scientific reports.
Armed with experience of dealing with such situations in the past, Oxfam India is working out a
community-based intervention programme to address the psychosocial needs of the survivors. We
are working out a collaborative work with mental health professionals in NIMHANS.

Three: Awareness campaign to provide appropriate information. Accurate and scientific
information will go a long way in rebuilding the lives and homes that the earthquake shattered.
Unfortunately need based appropriate information is not available easily. The situation calls for an
information and dissemination campaign to meet this urgent need, especially when the
reconstruction phase begins. Information regarding earthquake resistant houses will be one focus.

Oxfam India is working towards a strategy to take up this issue actively in select pockets. We are
associating with institutions and experts who have experience on this issue. We will bring out
information materials like posters, leaf-lets, video films and others in local language.
We are working out the details with other organisations such as (a) Development Resource Centre,
Mumbai; (b) Swayam Sikshan Prayog, Mumbai; (c) Peoples’ Science Institute, Dehradun and (d)
Anandi, Bhavnagar.
Four: Building community centres and people-exchange programme. There is wealth of
knowledge in pockets affected by past earthquakes like Latur. Ordinary people and communities
have a wealth of knowledge that can go a long way to improve the rehabilitation process. We are
keen to facilitate an exchange programme between people, especially women, masons from other
earthquake-affected areas of India and Gujarat.

We will facilitate the building of a multi-purpose community centre with the active participation of
the local people. This activity will also will be a demonstration to train the people in building
earthquake -resistant houses and other structures.
We are joining hands with organisations like Swayam Shikshan Prayog (Mumbai) to facilitate this.

Five: Basic Rights Campaign: Earthquake affected people have basic rights. When agencies and
NGOs move in a charity mode, they tend to ignore that disaster relief and long-term assistance is a
basic right. Rights related to health, education, rights of children and women are issues that Oxfam
India will highlight in its basic rights campaign. This will help the communities to be aware of their
rights and thus work towards to achieve this.

Six: Advocacy and lobbying for a disaster management policy and preparedness
programme. Looking at the fact that an earthquake hit Gujarat this year; a devastating cyclone in
1998 and an ongoing drought in certain pockets, Oxfam India realizes the need to respond to
disasters in a holistic way. We will work towards to develop and lobby a people-centric disaster
management policy for the state of Gujarat. We will also work with institutions and NGOs to
develop preparedness programme.
The interventions are designed in such way that the local skills could be used to its optimum levels
and external interventions minimized. An owner-driven approach, with the active involvement and
ownership of local communities will be the spirit of the programme.

Notes:
Apart from the organisations mentioned specifically in each section, we have an understanding
with Action Aid to collaborate on some of the above-mentioned issues. The details will be worked
out soon.
We have also had discussions with other NGO networks such as "Janvikas/ Janpath Citizen's
Initiative”, Ahmedabad and Kutch Nav Nirman Abhiyan, Bhuj the need and our limited support to
develop an intervention plan for some of the above mentioned activities. More directly we work with
our partners like Samerth, Gujarat jana Jagaran Sangh, (GJJS), and Manav kalyan Trust(MKT)for
integrated work relating to most of the above interventions particularly in Bachau and Rapar blocks.
Such activities will be taken up jointly on a case- to- case basis. Details are still to be worked out.
We are also discussing our initiatives with other agencies that have been part of a co-ordinated
relief response at Bangalore and Chennai, especially professional and other organisations. We will
be able to make a statement about this, once we work out the details. However, Oxfam India is
committed to go ahead even if the response for long-term work from these agencies (in Bangalore
and Chennai) is not encouraging.
(Note prepared by Dr. Unnikrishnan PV, Co-ordinator-Disasters & Emergencies, Oxfam
India, Bangalore, in consultation with the director and other colleagues in Oxfam India,
assessment team and collaborating agencies.)

An update from the field ..
The Earthquake: An update
The situation as on 15 Feb.

Overview:
Life in the quake-hit devastated regions of Gujarat is returning to "normal"
amazingly fast. People still live out in the open, with usually not more than a plastic sheet
to protect themselves, but have tried to make the best of what structure was left standing
to shelter themselves. Small trade and transport, and agricultural work, where irrigation is
available, are all in full swing. All kinds of relief material and supplies have reached all
affected areas, although in uncertain quantity and quality. People do complain, but a
sense of hurl pride is unmistakable in having to accept alms, and the legendary warm
hospitality of Kutchis continues to flow from their hearts despite the monumental tragedy
that has befallen them: milk, buttermilk, tea, and even food is offered to anyone who
shares a moment of concern with them. As the first wave of grief ebbs slowly away, they
face up to the daunting task of piecing their lives together once again, with considerable
apprehension, but detennination. At many places we were told, "it is only circumstances
that have made us extend our arms to take what is gifted, but we are not beggars".
As a village wit put it, (aptly at Dholavira village, on the edge of a once magnificent
Harappan city), "the real beggars are those who run these [charity] organisations - they
beg for ever!". Insecurity stalks the survivors in their makeshift shelters, particularly al
night: peaceful sleep is still uncommon. Continuing aftershocks contribute to a%feeling of
uncertain future.

The flood of relief flowing in has slowed. Many groups leave once they see that
immediate relief has reached. The government functionaries in the field are somewhat
better geared now, with fairly substantial cash doles reaching most villages at least once
so far, and the supply of essential commodities beginning to reach some places through
the public distribution system. Telecommunications and power supply are largely
restored, though still overburdened. Government health staff remain active, though at
times they appear overwhelmed by the earnestness of voluntary health teams doing
rounds of the villages, more than by the situation itself. Veterinary staff has been kept
more than busy by focal outbreaks of epidemics in cattle. The revenue officials have
"completed" an assessment of the damage and this assessment has been used by the
government to rig up and announce a "package" for rehabilitation surprisingly earlier
than expected. At these higher levels, confusion reigns, a result perhaps of politicking and
leg-pulling, and a lifetime habit of reducing everything to ritual. There is virtually no
coordination between the four major districts affected (Kutch, Surendranagar, Rajkot and
Jamnagar) - each of them speaks only with the state capital (if at all).
Within Kutch district, however, the administration is performing rather well in some
areas at least. Senior most bureaucrats hold a common mccl with ail agencies - NGO and
transnational - once everyday to review and plan all aspects of relief operations and
reconstruction work. Decisions are made and implemented swiftly, within several
limitations.

Relief
Mal-distribution of available resources continues to be a major problem, but given the
tendency among villagers to share, one can be fairly certain that no community will
starve. Save some honourable exceptions, there is no record of which family has got how
much, since all material relief (and there is virtually no exception to this rule) has been
thus far distributed by non-government agencies. The plan now (at least in Kutch district)
is to slowly wean off non-government agency-driven relief distribution, and replace it
with a vigorous PDS-driven distribution, overseen by NGO-run monitoring teams. (No
one is able to understand-why the government had not distributed any relief material
whatsoever in the first two weeks: perhaps it was content to observe other agencies,
including the RSS, doing the needful.)

Mow long w ill relief work need to continue?

Some items needed to be given once only - blankets, canvas / plastic sheets for shelter,
utensils for cooking and storing (foodgrains a»d water), etc. Most have by now received
these, but gaps have to be looked for and filled. If some needed items are not available
stored somewhere in the vicinity, they will need to be requisitioned. These operations are
not happening uniformly everywhere, and systems that are being set up will have to
organise themselves for this work.
Since the area was in any case facing severe drought, items like foodgrains and water
were in short supply even before the earthquake. In many villages, existing meagre stocks
have been ruined in the rubble. Most places will thus need a steady supply of foodgrains
till after the rain-fed crop arrives about 6 months from now. Cash-doles being given by
the government should help people buy what they need, provided inexpensive grain and
other commodities are supplied through mobile fair-price shops. In this case, cash doles
will need to be given regularly, or people will need to be provided sufficient gainful
employment immediately (for which reconstruction work is an attractive proposition).
The alternative is an ongoing free distribution of foodgrain - a logistical nightmare.
NGOs probably need to do both - push for resuming a vigorous PDS, while being
prepared to continue to distribute grain to communities which receive nothing.

Water continues to be supplied by tankers - and there are no quick alternatives in sight.
Cattle fodder is another item is severe short supply, resulting in cattle owners lotting
their cattle loose in large numbers, to fend for themselves. Fodder is being organised
from many places by the government and NGOs alike. The requirements are huge,
however, and at least I have no idea how sufficient quantities will be provided.

rhe damage:

Virtually every group and organisation that is out in the field has its own assessment of
the extent of loss of life and damage to property, based on surveys of varying degree of
rapidity and depth. Most of these are naturally not detailed household studies, but one or
other kind ot "gross" estimates. Error is added to by varying informants - a lot of the
population in villages is currently "floating", since people movement in and out for
various reasons, and families have moved out of main villages to the fields.
The figure of the dead is fairly certain for the villages - around 6000, according to an
independent survey. Estimates for mortality in the badly affected towns - particularly,
Bhachau, Anjar and Bhuj - are difficult to put, at best:
there is no record of the number of cremations in the first few days,
an unknown number of bodies are yet to be found from beneth the debris,
most families have gone away and are not available for giving information, and some are
perhaps totally wiped out.
The government figures stand at around 18,000 dead, overall. Many observers estimate
the actuals to be at least twice that figure.
One factor that caused high deaths in some areas was the congestion - closely packed
buildings around narrow lanes: those that escaped their own roofs were buried under their
neighbour's walls. And one frequently heard reason why survivors survived was that they
were out in the open celebrating Republic Day - one never realized this celebration was
so popular in the villages!
The figure of the injured is another riddle, again in the case of townspeople. A few
hundred paraplegics have been counted lying in various hospitals. One can only
extrapolate from this to estimate the extent of less severe trauma.

The damage to houses and other structures has been very severe. The government has
come up with its own assessment, which says that 229 villages in Gujarat are severely
affected - to the tune of more than 70% of the houses being irreparably damaged. It
proposes total relocation of these villages. NGOs have begun contesting this number - as
being too small. The apparent reason for the underestimate being that the government
revenue officials have only considered houses that were reduced to rubble as totally
damaged, whereas, a large number of houses, though partly standing, are uninhabitable,
and will need to be redone just as much as those totally destroyed. It is unclear yet what
will come of this.
In an area relatively far from the epicenter, Surendranagar district, an NGO estimates the
number villages that will need to be completely rebuilt as being at least twice as many as
government estimates. One can predict chaotic times ahead. Apart from the extent, what
was it that caused so much damage? For an untrained eye, it is difficult to come to a
generalization. Every type of construction, traditional and modem, using cement or
otherwise, of every shape and design, seems to have been badly damaged at one place or
another. One possible explanation has to do with the soil the buildings were built on those built on rocks have withstood the quake better.

Experts say that at some places it is traditional earthquake-resistant designs that have
survived. What is clear, however is that such designs were nowhere near widely used,
even in old 30-40 year old structures. Particularly pathetic are the stone walls in village
homes - virtually, piles of rough-hewn stones with thin layers of ordinary sand and mud
to cement them. They stood no chance. About the only structures as consistently
damaged as these poorly-strung stone walls are structures built by the government schools, hospitals, health centers, electric substations, administrative offices at all levels
(including the collectorate), and staff quarters of all departments - each and every one of
these that we saw in Kutch district were either rubble or damaged badly enough as to be
unusable. A large number of government employees and their family members were
killed or grievously hurt when these buildings collapsed. If this can be confirmed by a
systematic survey, there is a good case for prosecuting the Public Works Department as a
whole - being professionals, they have much to answer for. The upshot of this for the
moment is that virtually every government department in the region is functioning out of
a tent.
Organising for the next phase: Reconstruction
The task ahead is benumbing: rebuilding thousands of villages and many towns. I do not
know if there was ever a need on this scale in history. Where are we to find so many
masons and carpenters? The money? The material? At the moment, no one knows. There
are many groups working out designs and offering technical assistance. The government
has in principle accepted responsibility for rebuilding everything, and has announced a
set of four "package deals" each for a different location and extent of damage. It has also
in principle agreed to involve NGOs in the process, and to take all assistance that comes.
At a meeting in Ahmedabad recently, few NGOs or corporates came forward to take up
villages for reconstruction: they are probably suspicious of the government's integrity,
but also unsure of their own capacities. The government has issued directives to districts
to initiate relocations and reconctructions in conjunction with village-committees. The
administration has reportedly begun going about this in its usual ham-handed way, and
may end up causing more harm than good.
The ray of hope lies in a continuing NGO effort at the grass-roots. A federation of NGOs
in Kutch district (called Kutch Nav Nirman Abhiyan) is attempting to set up a network of
decentralised village clusters having 10-20 villages each, manned by a group of NGO
coordinators who will oversee all work in that area. These "subcenters" will channelise
and coordinate all help through democratically functioning and well-represented village
committees. There is also a move to constitute village endowments, out of which families
will be given soft loans for rebuilding, so that at the end, the village is left with a large
fund that can be utilized for further development in the long run. Large scale training
programs for masons and other artisans are being planned. Similar schemes are being
worked out in other districts. How well these schemes work will depend to a large extent
on what kind of people are available to man the "subcenters" and organise the effort. And
it is going to take a hell of a lot of time. A lot should become clear in the coming days,
but more of that later.

From Sridhar - Medico Friends Circle. Dated 18 February 2001

Gujarat Earthquake
Strategy Building for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction: A Preliminary Appraisal
The Gujarat earthquake has left a trail of devastation and death. Il has also generated
tremendous sense of generosity from people of all walks of life. The initial phase of relief
inspite of all its limitations has helped the people to tide over the situation. The next
phase of rehabilitation and reconstruction is the demand of the hour. All those individuals
and the organizations that were involved from the day one are raising questions about the
process and the perception that need to be kept in mind during the phase of rehabilitation
and reconstruction. What is presented here below is a preliminary appraisal of some of
the areas that need our attention in terms of rehabilitation and reconstruction. This is only
a preliminary appraisal aimed at initiating a broader discussion and deliberation so that
we arrive some common thrust that is beneficiary to the affected people and in a special
way the marginalised groups in the society.

1. Semi-Permanent shelters: Due to the consistent work of many groups and
individuals most of the affected people have 'tents' which at present serve as
temporary shelter. But those who are aware of the situation of Kutch would realize
the seriousness of the matter with regard to shelter. This is the third consequent year
of draught. The scorching heat is already felt in the noontime though this is only the
second week of February. The whole summer is still ahead. Just after summer the
monsoon is expected. Hence, the urgency to build the houses in the traditional models
based on the experience of the people. If that is not forthcoming then the other
alternative of semi-permanent shelters has to be constructed to manage the summer
and the monsoon. This would mean a seven months of waiting for the people for a
permanent home. While doing this, the Latur experience -both positive and negative­
need to be kept in mind. The positive aspect of Latur experience is that the traditional
construction means, methods, and material was brought to the fore once again. These
came to be forgotten with the anvil of modem construction technologies and material.
The negative aspect of Latur experience is that even here the socio-cultural and
economic aspects seem to have been overlooked. Hence, it is imperative that one
looks at the design, cost, and material to be used with the environmental and socio­
cultural aspects.

2. Legal provisions and awareness: there is a need to identify the loss due to the
devastating earthquake in all its totality.
People lost;
People wounded - whatever nature of the injury may be;
Lose of property;
Lose of working days/eaming of all the members of a family.

The means to identify these areas has to be seriously thought of and simplified. But to
insist on documents like ration card etc would be inflicting greater pain on the affected
people, who will look at the debris for documents.
Land for housing also needs to be kept in mind.
-those who have land;
-those who do not have land.

Agricultural and allied activities. The capitals lose as well as capital investment needed
to begin the process again.

3. Land for Reconstruction of Houses: the houses have been turned into debris. Now
debris arc being removed and dumped in open spaces. But most of the people are
saying that they do not want to build their houses where their relatives have been
'buried alive'. They are also saying that it is not good to remove the debris and dump
it on open spaces. Hence, it has to be worked out with the people in each village and a
one to one policy need to be worked out.
- In many villages the marginalised communities are living in the tents erected on the
lands of landed castes. Since this is not the agricultural season, it is allowed or
even tolerated. But once monsoon comes and agricultural activities begin then
those who lost the only household land they had will be displaced. This would lead
to conflicts in villages, which is already struggling to cope with the trauma of the
earthquake. Hence, on priority basis identify land for reconstruction of houses for
those who do not have household land.
- With regard to agricultural land, the media is trying to project that one of the after
effects of the earthquake is the new springs that are found in some places. This is a
welcome sign in a region that has witnessed successive draughts. But this can have
evil consequences especially on the marginalized communities. Most of the people
living on some of the uncultivable land or barren land or people from deprived
section of society. They tried to get some agricultural output from this land. But
with the media hype on new springs, there could be mad rush to grab this land.
This would lead to social conflict.
4. Sneha Samuday or Community Centre: Based on the experience of relief and
rehabilitation after the Orissa super cyclone, some of the NGOs are trying to set up
sneha samuday for those who are dispossessed. The idea behind this concept is
providing a space for the dispossessed (single women, children who are orphaned by
the earthquake) to come together and grieve over the death and destruction and find
strength to carry on their lives.

The concept in itself is a progressive one from the earlier idea of opening up
orphanages for those who were affected the most by the disasters. But one needs to
broaden the concept to make this sneha samyday as centre for multi-pronged activity
centre. The immediate economic need like food, water, do Ting also needs to be
addiessed by the sneha samyday. It also should be an information centre primarily to
these sections of people but also for the entire village.

Here information on matters like compensation announced means and place where these
can be obtained from etc need to be provided to all. This would also serve as a legal aid
centre especially in terms of land to be provided protection from land alienation etc.
1 his centre also has to provide space for cultural activities, which would also revive the
energy and the spirit of the people.

Above all the centre will function as an 'empowerment' place for the dispossessed people
of all the communities, the marginalized social groups like the Dalits, the Kolis, the
Rabanis, the Muslims, the most backward castes and the poor among the backward and
upper castes in the order of priority. This can not be achieved unless village and if need
be tola or hamlet level meetings are not conducted.
This calls for a discussion on the location of the sneha samudaya. In a caste society, this
issue of location of the centre needs to be kept in mind.
If this has to be done, the officials, agencies and organizations need to train their
volunteers not for relief alone but for rehabilitation and reconstruction. They have to be
in a sense bare-foot counselors, bare-foot legal advisors, bare-foot mobilisers. This would
also demand a shorl-terni training or initiation into the entire dynamics.

5. Correct Information: Rumours are spread about water level rising in Kuchch,
epidemics spreading, snatching of food and other material in the area. When one
verifies these rumours often they are false. Hence, through handbills, posters, slogans
correct informations need to be circulated and wrong informations need to be
condemned or disproved. Handbills also need to be printed for passing information
about relief package, rehabilitation plans, and availability of various services at
different places.
6. Compensation Package: At present the following agencies are involved in relief and
rehabilitation activities: the affected people themselves, the government, the NGOs,
corporate sector, trusts, individuals and international agencies. The relief operation
will have to be phased out, except continuing it for most vulnerable and dispossessed
groups in the rural areas. Leaving this out all the above mentioned agencies have to
put their heads together to work out a 'Relief Package'. One of the most important
critcrions for relief package is to insist on the principle of'Replacement Value'. The
government can not work out its compensation package on the basis of the money and
the material at its disposal but it has to take into the account this fact of replacement
of the entire loss. Unless this is done rehabilitation and reconstruction will only be a
slogan. At the most by dolling out something we would have arrested only the
discontent of the people.

7. Relief Code: The devastation caused by the earthquake is extensive. But the
generosity shown by everyone has also been overwhelming. Due to the fighting sprit
of the people of Kuchch and other districts and due to the generous support and
empathy shown by people from various walks of like, the disaster affected people are
slowly but steadily limping back to normal life. At this stage it is imperative that a
Relief Code be envisaged and the government be pressurized to enact and enforce it
with utmost political will. It is only by this we will be able to pay homage to many of
our brothers and sisters who lost their lives in this tragedy. And it is only in this way
we can stand by those who lost their near and dear ones, property and above all
continue to suffer the trauma. Few areas that need immediate attention are:
In relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction the socio-cultural aspects of the people
affected by the earthquake should be kept in focus. Otherwise it will be a
rehabilitation of our own conscience and not being part of the struggles of those
who arc affected;
The dignity of the people affected by the earthquake also should be kept in mind. It
is only because they are affected by the earthquake that we are tying to be part of
them and not because they are ’victims’. This should colour our entire thought,
word and action;
While carrying out relief and rehabilitation the government should be pressurized
to come out with a Replacement Value package and not be determined by the
amount of relief supply it has at its disposal. If there is political will the
government will surely find the necessary means.
Every Taluka should have committed IAS/GASA officers directly incharge of
relief and rehabilitation operations. They should be given the necessary official
permission to assess the situation, plan out strategy and to carry out the operations.
Every village should have bare-foot officer who like the Taluka level officers take
care of the assessment of the situation, plan out tragedy and to carry out the
operations. One of their primary jobs would be to form village level committees,
tola level committees so that the entire process is streamlined, wastage is avoided
and speedy and smooth operations take place. Since this involves round the clock
work they should be given special provisions. A network should be workout with
the district level officials, Taluka officials and the village level officials and the
NGOs.
If the above two actions are taken care then all the relief material should be brought
to base camps set up at Taluka or panchayat levels and from there they should be
dispatched to different hamlets, villages, and places where people have taken
shelter temporarily. This would avoid duplication, saturation of relief material and
rehabilitation processes and would greatly enhance equitable distribution of all
types of resources. This would also ensure the maintenance of dignity of the people
who are trying to emerge out of the trauma of a massive nature.
People affected the earthquake are refusing to rebuild their houses in the same
place where their home was once. Their sentiment is that 'We can not rebuild our
house on the same location where our near and dear ones were 'buried alive' infront
of us”. This sentiment of the people should be respected. If this has to be kept in
mind, land for reconstruction need to be identified in every locality, village and
hamlet. While doing this few important facts need to be kept in mind.

Common Property Resources should not be touched at all. Because these are the
property which is the central focus of all the villages. Efforts should be made to
maintain intact all the common properly resources. Only as a last resort these
should be taken for reconstruction of houses.
The government has to seriously consider and plan to take hold of ceiling surplus
land and redistribute it among all the people who have lost their house. If need be
the government has to enact new legislation in this regard.
There is rumours spread around that in Kuchch region the water level has gone up
and new springs have come up due to earthquake. This needs to be verified. But the
most important fall out of this type news is that land grabbing would become a
common phenomenon. Sale and purchase of land often forced by powerful and
dominant section of society will become an uncontrollable development. Hence,
the government has to enact legislations to prohibit land alienation, sale or transfer
of land for the next two years. Exception: sale, transfer of land should be allowed
only for reconstruction of houses for the people affected by the earthquake.

The above presented observations and observations arc preliminary in nature. They could
be simplistic or based on naive understanding of the situation. Yet they are presented for
generating wider discussion and deliberations so that all the efforts are geared to rebuild
the earthquake affected people to spring back to life.

Note: The state government was supposed to announce a relief package on the 12lh. But
this did not take place though a press conference was held by Mr.L.K. Advani. Instead of
announcing the package, Mr.Advani announced that he has asked the state government to
work out a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation plan. Even before the central or the
state government comes out with any such package, it may be appropriate to present a
comprehensive plan to the public so that those who are affected by the earthquake and the
people in general exert pressure on the government to keep people in focus when they
work out a plan.

(Mohamad Asif)
Action Aid
Centre

13.2.2001

(Prakash Louis)
Indian Social Institute

(Prasad M. Chacko)
Behavioural Science

Gujarat ■ 21 Days Later
RELIEF:

1. OVERALL:
From most accounts, the RELIEF phase is almost over—the Collector of Kutch and the
NGOs may officially say so in a day or two. No more supplies lying on the roads;
material is beginning to reach interior villages; and the government's Public Distribution
System (PDS) is finally about to kick in, we are told. Janpath's warehouses have been
emptying out almost as quickly as supplies come in from different parts of the country.
Abhiyan volunteers, some of whose family members were among the dead and injured,
are planning to take a couple of days off to be with their families, prior to getting back to
work on the Rehabilitation phase. (Most people seem to feel the necessity for a physical
break between the Relief and the Rehab phase. "Otherwise, the relief operations could go
on for ever," said one volunteer.)

2. PROBLEMS:
This does not mean that everyone has received sufficient food and shelter—at least, not
yet. There are still problems. From most newspaper accounts, and our first hand look at
one relief camp, there are still fissures along caste and class lines. We are not suggesting
overt discrimination by relief organizations, but local customs and power structures may
be complicating their work. In some villages, local leaders are apparently determining the
distribution of supplies. Also, the reluctance of the middle class to stand in relief lines
with the "lower classes," and the reluctance of Dalits to stand in lines with the "upper
classes," has been an issue. (When asked why they were personally delivering supplies to
the middle class, one volunteer said something like, "You know how proud these people
are, they won’t stand in lines. The poor people, on the other hand, they can always come
to our camp and collect supplies." Notwithstanding these problems, we arc convinced
that between the government, the NGOs and the religious sccto* shnrt-tcrm food supplies
will indeed reach most people soon.

3. JANPATI1/ABI1IYAN/SEWA
From our own observation, these organizations have done an exemplary job in providing
relief, under the circumstances. This sentiment was echoed by several international
agencies as well. This is because these organizations have been working in the affected
area for years, especially among the poor. Their volunteers know each household in their
villages by name, and we were told that Janpath volunteers are physically delivering the
One-month Ration Kits to each family on their list. To all those who so generously
contributed to the Ration Kit Initiative supported by Indians For Collective Action,
California and The Bhoomika Trust, Chennai: contrary to press reports which talk
incessantly of relief not reaching the poor, Geetha and I have every confidence that our
rations have or will soon reach the needy families.

4. HOW CAN YOU HELP?

We are told that tents, especially larger tents for schools and community centers, are still
in SERIOUS SHORT SUPPLY. People are already tired of staying under taips; they are
unable to gel schools started; and some of them do not have access to larger spaces for
community meetings. ANY ONE WILLING TO PAY FOR or DESPATCH SUCH
TENTS (poles can be procured locally), dhurries and chatais (bamboo mats) ARE
ENCOURAGED TO DO SO IMMEDIATELY. PLEASE CONTACT SEWA (they need
about 50 large tents) and UNNATI at the numbers given below. Suggestions: a. Foreign
donors, please do not ship expensive tents. Coordinate with an Indian NGO to purchase
canvas tents locally and ship them ASAP, b. If you can't ship tents, ship double-layered
canvas cloth, and local NGOs such as UNNATI can have tents custom-stitched in
Ahmedabad (provides employment), c. No more tarps, as they won't survive the
monsoon! [BHOOMIKA TRUST and ICA California: After paying for the 1,000 ration
kits from Chennai (approx Rs. 10 lakhs), we will have Rs. 5-6 lakhs left. Should we
invest part of it in supplying tents? We can discuss this later among our e-groups. Also,
we can coordinate with the Indian Express people and the Round Table to see if they
want to help ship tents.]
5. LESSONS LEARNED EROM RELIEF OPERATIONS:

Know the local culture before shipping relief supplies, a. People affected were not
looking for cooked puris and chappathis from Tiruchi, or for CARE food packets beyond
one or two days! They were looking for foodgrains and waler so they could start cooking
their own food ASAP, b. Old clothes, definitely a NO, NO. As for new clothes,
miniskirts, jeans and sarees, for people who wear gagra/cholis? We were told that
boxfulls of inappropriate clothing were still lying in warehouses all across Gujarat (some
may have even found their way to markets in Mumbai.)

REHABILITATION
While a sense of URGENCY was important to the RELIEF phase, most NGOs and the
local government arc urging patience while rehabilitation plans arc worked out in the
coming days and weeks. For those of us from the outside, our appeal is to WAIT, but
NOT FORGET (there are a few areas in which we can help immediately, see below).
Most of the NGOs are beginning to seriously look at plans for long term rehabilitation of
the affected people. While there is recognition that only the government and international
agencies can come up with the level of funds required for long term rehabilitation, they
are at the same time very very skeptical that such aid will reach the needy in a timely or
appropriate manner. They point to the experience of Latur and other disasters overseas
where it look years before providing permanent houses to the affected.
Nonetheless, they are continuing to work closely with the government, while working out
their own plans for the rehabilitation phase. Here are some highlights from our
conversations:

1. ORPHANS/CHILDREN:
NGOs, international organizations such Save the Children, and the RSS, each for their
own reason, are asking people to place on hold the rush to seek out kids for adoption!
Adoptions are NOT a priority. The focus is to provide trauma counseling, and bring back
a certain routine in the lives of the kids, IN THEIR OWN ENVIRONMENT. There
seems to be plenty of professional guidance in the area of psychological/trauma
counseling (e.g. NIMHANS, Bangalore), however, the need for more Gujarati-speaking
counselors has been expressed by several NGOs. (Let us remember that our help in
procuring large tents, already mentioned, can directly help the communities restart
classes for kids ASAP). Also, SEWA is asking for help in procuring simple playthings
such as, play dough, scribble chalk & boards, simple toys, etc. for their 2,000 kids. This
can be in cash or kind, but please no barbie dolls or other high-tech dolls. Most of what
they need can be procured right here in Ahmedabad.
2. ADOPTING VILLAGES: NO! NOT! NO!!!
As one NGO put it, all the affected villages have been ’’taken," with more ’’adopters" than
eligible "adoptees." The notion of adopting villages is being decried by the NGOs as well
as the Collector. For one, it is very condescending, implying long term dependence,
whereas most villagers want to get back to a routine quickly, and want gainful
employment. Secondly, it is obvious that the concept of "adoption" is ready-made for all
the publicity hogs, who are falling over each other to "adopt" villages, without a clue as
to what it is supposed to mean. In our opinion, long term partnerships with local NGOs,
who are focusing on livelihood issues, is a more sound concept (sec SEWA's priorities
below).
[Exception: "adopting" a village may be OK if the adopting organization has deep roots
in the village, is adopting it with the blessing of the village, and has a clear plan on what
they plan to accomplish there.]

3. LIVELIHOOD SECURITY:

SEWA is not an NGO in a strict sense, but is a Women's cooperative consisting of over
60,000 women. Most of their members have been severely affected by the quake.
Nevertheless, their focus today is how they can move their membership from a relief
mode to an employment mode. This week, they are providing craft kits to their members,
most of whom are craftspeople, so that they can get back *o embroidery and start
marketing their products ASAP. While it may be hard for many of us to imagine that
women who have been so traumatized by the quake would want to be sitting in their
temporary shelters knitting all day long, this is EXACTLY what they want to do. Another
example of a livelihood security issue is helping salt workers rebuild their damaged salt
pans (approx Rs. 30,000 per family of capital expense involved, we are told.) Whether
they are craftspeople, or laborers, or salt workers, all they want to do is get back to work.
Volunteers who have been wanting to come here in large numbers and "help” should
keep in mind that a better option may be to provide moral and financial support from
where they are to the large labor pool right here. We don't want to put them out of work,
do we? For anyone wanting to focus oh long-term livelihood issues, SEWA or UNNATI
or ABIIIYAN are good places to start. (We are carrying a paper by SEWA on this issue,
if you are interested.)

4. PERMANENT SHELTERS:
The government apparently approved a plan by one group two days ago to put up a large
number of shelters, with corrugated iron walls and roof-in a place where the temperatures
in summer can reach over 130F degrees! NGOs are aghast but not surprised that such
things happen, and hence they are taking their own initiative in designing low income,
earthquake-resistant structures quickly. We met several knowledgeable people working
with the NGOs on this issue. Support to these efforts will go a long way in getting people
into more permanent houses. Wewill provide details of these later. (We are carrying a
proposal on shelters from Abhiytan/Janpath if anyone is interested—the plan emphasizes
use of local labor in areas such as casting tiles, etc.)

SUMMARY:

NEED:
More tents (especially larger ones); dhurries/chatais; support for livelihood security (e.g.
crafts, salt pans, local labor opportunities); expertise in low-income e/q resistant housing;
and MONEY to local NGOs to support these initiatives. [Some NGOs are already seeing
the initial hype of financial help fade quickly, with very few checks actually received to
date]

DO NOT NEED (for now anyway):
More village adoptions, general-purpose
volunteers, medical supplies, food, doctors, etc.
Impressions from Raju & Geetha Rajagopal dated 18 February 2001,

Position: 245 (8 views)