RF_DM-3_LAT-21_SUDHA.pdf
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VISIT TO EARTHQUAKE - AFFECTED VILLAGES IN LATUR AND UMARGA
From October Sth to 13th,
1993
General
When T Pradeep (aidtime SCI volunteer who has worked
in earthquake and ffood/eye lone affected areas) and I decided to
drive down to Latur on the 7th, we were not sure if we would get
through into the affeetged areas, as the last news was that the
’ Govern-ment had clamped severe restrictions on entry and that
there miles-long" queues in the roads leading into Latur and
Umarga. We, therefore, decided to enter Latur through Ambajogai,
after contacting Dr. Lohia of Manav Lok and OXFAM people who were
said to be available between there and Latur.
Though we had thought of taking HAM radio volunteers with
us, because of uncertain access, we had put it offn However,
Maharashtra Government invited HAM operators to help and waived
all entry restrictions for them. So two HAM vols, Nataraj and
Niran Jan joined us.
We had some problem with the steering and stopped at a
garage at Tumkur. The workers who fixed it, after learning that
we are headed to Latur, decided not to charge us, that being
iheftr contribution to the earthquake-affected. We stopped at
jferjjHA (Jalahalli, Raichur Dist) that
night picked up Pandu,
■|ier and Yael, physio-therapist vol from ACTION HEALTH, UK, to
||||K assess the status of disabled, which was one of our terms of
^^^Frence. Entering Latur from Ausa was no problem as the
^fcrnment restrictions on entry were off by then.
AT LATUR Hotel Venkatesha, the lobby hall was like a Kalyana
^Ktapa hall, with the OXFAM-initiated NGO Coordinating Council's
Ksk operating at one corner and the rest carpeted and converted
K a meeting, resting and sleeping place for vols from all over.
Relief material were also around. The Council had around 50
Rroups and organisations under its umbrella.
They ranged from
some rural reading room to an organisation like Manav Lok, which
is a huge institution funded by a dozen agencies. Dr. Lohia of
Manav Lok is the Chairman of the Council. As on 8th/9th, the
Council's 'members' were working in around 11 villages, having
been allocated those by the Collector of Latur. They had set up
six camps with vols, at Haregaon, Hasalgaon, Limbala, Javalgaon,
Sinsal and Chincholi Jogan.
Deaths
The Govt, figure is under 1’0,000, while unofficial
figure varies from 40 to 50,000. Many bodies were cremated in the
first two days by people in their own homes with timber pulled
out from the collapsed houses. The Govt, has kept account of only
the bodies which were identified and"for which panchnama was
done. Some hundreds of students of Tata Instt. of Social
Sciences, Bombay have been engaged by the Govt, to carry out a
survey. Many organisations are also collecting data of death and
losses in the villages they are working in. They see this as a
priiarity. Predictably, this would be highly contentious issue.
Some groups and organisations are also collecting specific
information on the more disadvantaged, like orphaned children,
widowed women, aged, disabled
and other supportless people.
Food Many organisations are still offering cooked food.
Government is giving out dry rations. But no one has a clear
picture of whether* distribution is adequate and reaching the
interior villages. I heard mention of some 11 villages 'where aid
had not reached7.
Health
In the villages along the main road, one sees many
groups running clinics (in tents). There is also a constant flux
in these, with organisations replacing one another. The DRDO
medical teams were going round, too. They were also asking all
the clinics what they needed. In the roadside villages doctors
abound. But interior villages picture was not clear. The NGO
Coordinating Council wanted to set up a mobile medical team. We
agreed that doctors f«rdm Bangalore would be part of this.
Medical supplies Again seem plenty. But one clinic was
asking for scissors, sutures and needles, which apparently no one
had.
Mention of extensive mental trauma by volunteers who were
working in close contact with villagers. This period ofcourse was
the first ten days, which certainly are terrible. When and if the
doctors and volunteers themselves get out of the daze (more
likely the next batches), they may be able to reach cut to the
counselling needs.
Another big need that would come up soon is
when the hundreds of hospitalised return home. Exact nature of
disabilities will come, to light then. The healing,of all would
also depend on what they see as worth returning to.
Housing
The damage to houses and building has to be seen to
be believed. The massive stone and mud-mortared structres (random
rubble construction) have crumbled down into piles -of sheer
rubble. The stones which crushed people to death under them
actually look quite innocent. When one looks at them now, 10 days
after the disaster, it is difficult to believe that thousands of
people and animals were lying dead under them on that fateful
day. Looking at what was once Shivaji Teli's house in Limbala, it
was impossible for-me to imagine that two buffaloes and seven
women and children had died there. He was sleeping in the field
and had survived. The houses in this area have a special
structure. They often are enclosed by an outer 8-12 feet high
wall of stone masonry, which adds to the mass and rigidity of the
structure.
One finds an odd wall (which has been redone recently)
surviving in the middle of it all. Other structures not affected
are the water tanks which are on 40-45 feel high stilts and newly
constructed concrete buildings. In fact I found one such building
in a hamlet of Killari, which was the epicentre of the quake.
In IMagarsoga village
(population :7000)J? 2000 houses have
collapsed but there is not been any death (of humans presumably).
People have received minor injuries. Such villages ’(where no
death or serious injuries have occurred) are not on anybody's
list for relief. I also found one village, Tapegoan, where people
had moved out of their houses and camped under tin sheets or any
shacks they could devise. As tremors continue to occur in the
area, people are in the grip of panic and do not want to sleep
inside their houses.
The Government/ PWD is putting up long tin sheds comprising
rows of 'houses'. As on 13th October, very few sheds had been
handed over to the people. Most people were still in the shacks
and tents. In Pethsangvi, which is a biggish roadside village
with many groups and agencies working, the inside of the sheds
were all we.t and mucky.
To give an illustrative profile, Pethsangvi has a population
of 3300. No of families: 334. Deaths: 366; injured: 500 (of which
400 have returned and 100 are still in the hospitals. Animals:
1,335 of which 300 have died.
Housing: 250 tin sheds; American army tents: 22; rest in shacks.
Water As of now, water is being tankered in
by the Govt. The tankers are sitting in villages for long hours.
One does not have a clear picture of whether all the villages are
being reached. But with no staring facilities, people have no
water for washing. What they get from the tanker is used for
cooking. We saw several plastic storage tanks lying around but
none plumbed and installed. Already some lids are missing. APPRO
is drilling some wells. I met one, Dasharath Nanaware from
Prerana Pratishthan, from Phaltan, Satara Dist. who was to take
up restoration of handpumps in 50 villages in Latur and Umarga
dists. With some small changes and attention’, water supply in
many places can be made more efficient, convenient and wastage
avoided.
San i tat ion
The state of sanitation and drainage are highly
unsatisfactory
to non-existent. With rains pouring in the black
clay soil, the whole place is mucky. Paul Sherlock, the OXFAM
water and sanitat ion expert in disasters, has been raising the
issue of sanitation, need to put up washing places for women and
putting up storage facilities so that tankers can be released.
But it seems to be on no one else's list of priorities.
Agriculture The lush green fields belie the tragedy that
surrounds them. The standing crops (jowar, bajra and sunflower)
need to be harvested and rabi sown in the coming week. People
wait upto to half a day in lines to collect seeds that the Govt.
is giving. Who needs help in these is not yet clear. Atleast one
organisation I met, wanted to hire a tractor and plough and sow
two acres for every family in the four villages it was working
in..With many families having lost the men or draught animals or
both, some one needs to carry out this task. I saw three widowed
women waiting in the line for seeds at Limbala.
NGQ Response and oord inat ion
The NGO's are wide-ranging.
All parties and political groups are in, too. Shiv Sena and RSS
are quite prominent. There are other religious groups like some
Math or the other’, the Jain Sangh, city municipalities and
citizens groups from anywhere in the country, labour unions like
the Shrama Jeevi Sanghtana and Chattisgarh Mukti Mo.rcha. The NGO
CC, based at Hotel Venkatesha is working rather like a reception
committee and clearing house for many, though some 50 groups and
orgns. are under its wings. The Committee takes decisions through
a core group, which meets everyday., Presently, they have decided
to work in around 30 villages. Each gp/ orgn. has been allocated
certain number of villages. What they do there is left to them.
Shrama Jeevi Sanghatana, for example, is salvaging buried
articles from the debris and restoring them to the owners. They
say that this is a very important work as the articles of great
value to the people, including of sentimental value.
There are a couple of crucial questions around this:
(a) The groups/ orgns,. are doing what they have resources for and
consider important . They dont necessarily take into account all
the basic and immediate needs of the people.
(b) Some resources need to be raised to meet the immediate needs.
Some are available with other groups. Some coordination can
optimise the resources much more than what is happening
presently.
Many orgns., especially, the big ones, are preoccupied with
only long term development plans and not enough attention is paid
to the immediate releif and rehab needs. There is a great flush
of money both through the Govt, and other funding agencies
channeling it through the NGO's. This, unfortunately, is the
cause of the other agendas dominating. A lot is being done but
lot more needs to be and on an emergent basis.
Conclusions & Suggestions The immediate work that needs to
be taken up to make people's lives a little better as well as try
to put back some normalcy and self-reliance, in my opinion, are:
(1)
Trauma care post hospital care and disability.
(2)
San i tat ion & Drainage Proper trenches have to be dug around
all the sheds. Some kind of gravel flooring has to be done to
keep the ground dry. Soakpits for wash places need to be done.
(3)
Harvest in and Rab i sowing
In some instances, this may be
better carried out like an operation with vols and tractors.
(4)
Shelter: Urgent, as winter is approaching. Material from
collapsed houses may be salvaged.
(5)
Employment Govt, is carrying out all the work through labour
hired from outside. We heard that wages for locals have
depressed. 2 to 4 above can be taken up through wagelabour,
employing local people.
Position: 5234 (1 views)