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Amphan Plight Of People Of West Bengal
The strength of the super cyclone ‘amphan’ that hit the states of West Bengal and Odisha and parts
of Bangladesh is no longer unknown to the world. It is said to be one of the strongest storms to have
visited these parts of the world in decades. The precautionary measures taken by the governments
of the respective places helped safeguard the lives of people, but the destruction that it caused was
beyond comprehension.
The day after the storm subsided, people of West Bengal could still not be relieved. All one could see was wreckage everywhere. On the day the cyclone passed, both the telephone and the electricity lines were already damaged. So, the people had no power as well as no connectivity with others. All the roads seemed to have become devastated forests, with trees lying uprooted or broken. The intensity of the cyclone was to such an extent that massive trees lay there lifeless and blocking the roads entirely. Some places thus lost the means to go to other places for help. The rain that accompanied the cyclone added to the misery of the people, as it caused floods in a number of places.
The cyclonic storm had even carried several heavy things with it from one place and thrown it at another place. Hence, the falling of trees and other objects like rooftops, windows and hoarding frames caused further damage to the water pipes. The drainage system was blocked at most places too. The people thus were left in their flooded houses with no food, no water and no electricity. No one was spared of the devastating effects of this natural disaster.
Small huts, cars, two wheelers, anything that stood in the way of the storm were completely destroyed. The buses and cars that were parked were crushed and smashed. There were reports of 72 deaths in the state. Though the mortality rate could be controlled, the devastation was large scale.
The effect of the storm was such that even the city streets were flooded and people had to stay indoors without electricity for several days. This ignited the anger of the people and reports of mob protests were heard. As it is, the Corona virus was making life difficult owing to its rising positive cases in the state; ‘amphan’ only increased the sorry state of the citizens of West Bengal. The North and South 24 Parganas were the worst hit in this storm; the attack was so immense that the Chief Minister had no choice but call the Indian Army. Along with three columns of the army, she deployed the NDRF, the SDRF, the railways, port and all other available teams from the private sectors. She urged the state offices to dispense as many workers as they could for the relief work. The damage was too heavy for the state departments to restore alone.
The plight of the people of the Sunderbans was the most heart-rending for this was the place through which the super cyclone made its way to Kolkata. They had lost almost everything. Certain areas saw total destruction. Houses were washed away and along with that everything else. The trees, cow sheds, crops - there was nothing that they could see after the cyclone left. Amphan had destroyed the entire place. The world’s largest mangrove forests were ripped down along with extensive damage to fishing vessels. It seemed that the cyclone had robbed the people of the Sunderbans of their means of livelihood.
The aftermath of the cyclone revealed that it was a tricky situation for the authorities, as the Chief Minister pointed out, they were faced with four issues simultaneously. First was the pandemic, followed by the lockdown and the plight of migrant workers and finally the super cyclone. This was like the final blow to the state. The situation was so terrible that with folded hands she to plead with the masses to be patient. She ensured them that tireless efforts were being put in by the workers to bring the state back to normalcy. In fact, owing to lack of labourers she urged the district administration to seek help from the local people to rebuild their localities.
The state government took note of the scarcity of drinking water at several places and ordered the district magistrate to look into the matter and ensure that the complaint was taken care of immediately.
There is no doubt of the deep misery experienced by the people of West Bengal post the amphan super cyclone. However, the chief minister and her team went out of their way to see that the people got back to an almost normal life. And surely they did.
© Arked
The day after the storm subsided, people of West Bengal could still not be relieved. All one could see was wreckage everywhere. On the day the cyclone passed, both the telephone and the electricity lines were already damaged. So, the people had no power as well as no connectivity with others. All the roads seemed to have become devastated forests, with trees lying uprooted or broken. The intensity of the cyclone was to such an extent that massive trees lay there lifeless and blocking the roads entirely. Some places thus lost the means to go to other places for help. The rain that accompanied the cyclone added to the misery of the people, as it caused floods in a number of places.
The cyclonic storm had even carried several heavy things with it from one place and thrown it at another place. Hence, the falling of trees and other objects like rooftops, windows and hoarding frames caused further damage to the water pipes. The drainage system was blocked at most places too. The people thus were left in their flooded houses with no food, no water and no electricity. No one was spared of the devastating effects of this natural disaster.
Small huts, cars, two wheelers, anything that stood in the way of the storm were completely destroyed. The buses and cars that were parked were crushed and smashed. There were reports of 72 deaths in the state. Though the mortality rate could be controlled, the devastation was large scale.
The effect of the storm was such that even the city streets were flooded and people had to stay indoors without electricity for several days. This ignited the anger of the people and reports of mob protests were heard. As it is, the Corona virus was making life difficult owing to its rising positive cases in the state; ‘amphan’ only increased the sorry state of the citizens of West Bengal. The North and South 24 Parganas were the worst hit in this storm; the attack was so immense that the Chief Minister had no choice but call the Indian Army. Along with three columns of the army, she deployed the NDRF, the SDRF, the railways, port and all other available teams from the private sectors. She urged the state offices to dispense as many workers as they could for the relief work. The damage was too heavy for the state departments to restore alone.
The plight of the people of the Sunderbans was the most heart-rending for this was the place through which the super cyclone made its way to Kolkata. They had lost almost everything. Certain areas saw total destruction. Houses were washed away and along with that everything else. The trees, cow sheds, crops - there was nothing that they could see after the cyclone left. Amphan had destroyed the entire place. The world’s largest mangrove forests were ripped down along with extensive damage to fishing vessels. It seemed that the cyclone had robbed the people of the Sunderbans of their means of livelihood.
The aftermath of the cyclone revealed that it was a tricky situation for the authorities, as the Chief Minister pointed out, they were faced with four issues simultaneously. First was the pandemic, followed by the lockdown and the plight of migrant workers and finally the super cyclone. This was like the final blow to the state. The situation was so terrible that with folded hands she to plead with the masses to be patient. She ensured them that tireless efforts were being put in by the workers to bring the state back to normalcy. In fact, owing to lack of labourers she urged the district administration to seek help from the local people to rebuild their localities.
The state government took note of the scarcity of drinking water at several places and ordered the district magistrate to look into the matter and ensure that the complaint was taken care of immediately.
There is no doubt of the deep misery experienced by the people of West Bengal post the amphan super cyclone. However, the chief minister and her team went out of their way to see that the people got back to an almost normal life. And surely they did.
© Arked
