(Written 8 Nov- 11 Nov 2007)
Sometimes past scripts remain in ethereal state, tucked into memory, only to be materialized as an article or a book when prodded by pleasant or disturbing events. The recent revelation of the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund has nudged my memory. While part of this Fund is alleged to have transformed into ether, my own memory of the Orissa Cyclone has done the reverse; hence the materialization of this piece on a first hand experience of the events.
I was the Sub Area Commander of Bihar & Orissa awaiting departure for Nagaland – my new assignment - when there was speculation whether the cyclone was headed for Bangla Desh or Orissa. As events unfolded, the stage was set for coastal Orissa. It happened on 29/30 Oct 1999. The Super Cyclone had struck with unprecedented fury. As per the Standing Operating Procedure the local Divisional Commander was ordered to mobilize his formation for immediate Relief & Rescue. He asked me to assist him. I agreed, but asked him to seek the clearance from Lucknow & also to provide me a helicopter & I would be with him in Ranchi within an hour. This was done & I arrived at Ranchi where the IAF aircrafts were loaded & in readiness for take off. Bad weather prevented our departure that day. None of us had ever handled a disaster before; this one was of immense magnitude & multi - dimensional.
It was late in the afternoon when the scene of devastation unfolded as the aircraft circled over Bhubaneshwar. Water engulfed most of the land. The landscape looked more like Bangla Desh or Bihar during the rainy season. The Bay of Bengal seemed to have extended its reach deep into Jagatsinghpura, Kendrapara & Bhadrak. All trees had been leveled without exception. As we came in for landing more devastation unfolded.
We were transported to the State Guest Rooms. Trees, electric & telephone poles lay strewn across the roads. At the Guest House there was no electricity, water or telephone communication. We settled down as best as we could & established contact with the Government officials as well as with Lucknow. The Control Headquarters had been established but the columns of troops were en route from Barrackpore & Ranchi. They had to pass through Bhadrak.
At night we learnt that the bridges on the highway in Bhadrak had been washed away; our first setback. The best of plans rarely work with clockwork precision. Quick assessment, flexibility, improvisation, & modification of the overall plan were going to be the hallmarks of such an operation. The columns were stranded. Some civilians had drowned while escaping the rising waters west of the highway. Far more water was expected to gush down from the hill districts in the hinterland as it was raining. Water level on both sides of the highway was rising.
Back at the State Guest House we had a candlelight dinner consisting of lumps of sticky rice & dal. We had no complaints. Administration had actually collapsed. This condition prevailed for some days while the state government grappled with multifarious problems. The incumbent Chief Secretary had flown to USA to be with his offspring during the height of this disaster!
First & foremost all means of communication had to be speedily restored. Opening up of various major & subsidiary arterial roads was vital to reach the worst hit areas. This entailed physical reconnaissance & employment of mechanical & physical effort. At the same time marooned people trapped in small hamlets would perish if relief didn’t reach on time. Their relief & rescue couldn’t wait till the roads opened. The only way to reach them was by boats & helicopters. Our infantry & engineer columns were stranded within Bhadrak, in North Orissa. Rescue & relief operation in the most critical areas was yet to commence. The situation at Bhadrak had not only stalled us but compelled the column commanders to rescue locals west of the highway to safer areas on the road. Engineer BUATs had to be launched at night, in the rain, to ferry troops across the breach. At the same time furious efforts were in progress to plug the breach. Meanwhile the rising water was threatening to breach the road at more places.
Meanwhile the Air Force & Navy too were concentrating their effort – the former in Bhubaneshwar & the latter in the coastal areas. While the relief columns were arriving I took an aerial view of the cyclone affected areas. This was most useful to allocate resources to ground judiciously & expeditiously. What I saw was a revelation that was very handy for coping with all aspects of the operation - rescue, relief, medication, politicians, media, coordination of voluntary organizations & speedy disposal of dead bodies & carcass.
Areas Devastated
The Super Cyclone and its aftermath caused "severe" damage in the districts of Jagatsinghpura, Balasore, Cuttack, Puri, Nayagarh, Jajpur Kendrapada, Bhadrak and Khurda and "moderate" damage in the districts of Mayurbhanj, Dhenkanal and Keonjhar. The worst hit was the areas that came astride the path of the cyclone – the path that looked like a typical ice hockey stick i.e. due East-West-swinging Northwestwards & back along the same path. Almost complete devastation was suffered up to the latitude of Ersama in Jagatsinghpura. Though this is a broad brush assessment of the affected areas, as per my own assessment I have classified & segmented these areas further based on the cumulative impact of tidal wave, wind & rain or part thereof.
Protocol Faux Pas
My immediate boss in the chain of command was the Area Commander at Jabalpur. I was completely out of touch with him. Here, at Bhubaneshwar my boss, the Task Force Commander, was the GOC of a Division. The day following our arrival at Bhubaneshwar, he decided to visit the breech on the highway at Bhadrak that held our troops coming by road from Barrackpore. While we were departing I learnt that the Area Commander was arriving at Bhubaneshwar by IA Flight. Not wanting to slight the Task Force Commander, I went to Bhadrak but not before deputing an officer & vehicle to receive the Area Commander. Just as I feared, they were late in arriving at the airport. It was a Faux Pas I regret. The Area Commander looked like the Vesuvius about to explode but said nothing. I apologized & explained the circumstances to him. He made adequate amends later when I departed for my next posting to Nagaland.
This was the first & last visit of the Area Commander during the operation. After retirement he headed the Disaster Management Cell in Madhya Pradesh.
Elements of Nature
One had read about the description of the cyclone. Now a bird’s eye view revealed much more. The elements that caused & multiplied the disaster were:-
(a) Oceanic waves.
(b) Wind.
(c) Rain.
(d) Night.
(e) Embankments along the coast large scale settlement of fishermen, from Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal & Bangla Desh, along the coastline in temporary hutments.
Tidal Waves
Apparently a tidal wave, believed to be 20 feet high, came crashing in over the coast driven by winds over 250 Kms per hour, in an East-Westerly direction up to halfway between Bhubaneshwar & the coastline. The devastation caused was complete almost up to Ersama. It was evident that devastation was severe near the coast & less severe towards the hinterland. Just short of Ersama, the devastation was complete with not even a trace of a village. Closer to Ersama, one could identify a village by the traces of just the foundation of dwellings. However, concrete houses, though damaged survived complete destruction.
The incoming tidal waves carried trees, hutments, cattle & humans several miles inland; simultaneously inundating the very fertile land in Jagatsinghpura with saline sea water. All fishermen dwelling on the coast, about whom the state government had no record just perished; so did the peasants in the villages inland. There was a case of a fisherman who tucked his children in a Storm Shelter & went to bring his livestock. He never came back. I came across many such surviving orphans all over the affected area. Thus, the entire population was transported miles away from their homes; their bodies strewn all over a vast area. Identification was impossible. At that stage, rescue of survivors was vital.
Thus this area was the victim of the fury of tidal waves, furious winds & inundation by saline sea water; a combination that inflicted the worst damage, both in the short & long term.
While dead bodies were randomly deposited all over the landscape, interestingly, the cattle were found lying dead in close clusters. It was evident that those cattle that were not tethered panicked & ran helter-skelter; instinctively trying to find safety together till the unforgiving fury of nature put them to permanent rest – in a group.
There was no standing tree in sight. The coconut trees whose roots are considered strong & firmly embedded, were lying like match sticks – not in the direction of the prevailing wind but in the opposite direction, i.e. towards the east. We shall explain this phenomenon shortly.
The tidal wave easily surmounted the tidal bandh astride the coast & swept all trees, structures, and livestock & humans miles inland. Only the concrete structures seemed to survive. The returning winds swept seawards but this time the bandh prevented large amount of the sea water from escaping; rendering the soil infertile & sources of water polluted.
The Wind
The effect of the wind waned as it progressed inland. Near the coast where there was no trace of habitation, one gradually saw traces of the foundation & deeper inland the thatched roofs were missing while further inland parts of the roof had been blown off. The wind had been the cause of disruption to telephone & electric poles & cables. The top canopy of trees within Bhubaneshwar had been rudely wrenched off.
The devastation due to the wind seemed to veer northwards in the vicinity of Bhubaneshwar as was evident from the tell tale marks on the ground. The direction of the wind therefore was from the sea westwards up to Bhubaneshwar & then it swung northwards towards Bhadrak by which time much of its fury had waned. Nevertheless the entire area halfway up to Bhadrak was inundated; submerging all houses almost up to the roof top. Apparently the locals were safe as they were spared from the tidal wave. Nevertheless they needed urgent rescue & relief. The inundation in Bhadrak was not due to tidal waves.
On the return flight I saw that the coconut trees revealed what actually happened. As I flew from Bhadrak towards Bhubaneshwar I saw that these trees were lying flat in a north-south direction. Near about Bhubaneshwar these prone trees had changed the direction from north-south to NW-SE & later west-east towards Ersama & beyond to the coast. It so happened that the winds blew inland from east to west & swung north, after which they blew, obviously with greater fury in the exact opposite direction. This explains the pattern made by the fallen coconut trees on the landscape. Obviously this reverse flow of wind caused the actual damage all along.
Thus it was evident that almost the districts of Jagatsinghpura & Kendrapara & only contiguous coastal areas suffered the dual onslaught of furious winds, accompanied by tidal waves, & then equally furious winds in the reverse direction; & the latter seemed to cause the major destruction. Obviously these two districts & contiguous coastal areas deserved greater attention.
Rain
The cyclone was preceded & followed by heavy rains. It was apparent that the heavy downpour was across the state. However, swiftly rising waters west of the highway astride Bhadrak indicated that the hill districts experienced very heavy cloudbursts. The rushing water from these upper tracts gave rise to sudden inundation of land not only west of the highway but also east of it. The small bridges & culverts across the road were grossly inadequate to discharge the water accumulating from the hill districts. Thus there were some cases of drowning in this area initially. What was alarming was the likelihood of the highway getting breached at numerous places as the mud filled berm were quickly eroded.
These areas in the North, i.e. Bhadrak, were flooded with rain water. However, even thatched huts though almost fully submerged were intact. Obviously, no damage was caused by the winds that apparently had lost their fury by the time they reached thus far. These areas therefore demanded rescue to safer areas by boats.
Night
Total disruption to the power supply made movement & rescue operation difficult at night. The arterial roads leading to the coast & into the coastal districts were severely damaged. Movement at night for the rescuers & rescued was hazardous. Obviously, time was of utmost importance; operations had to be pressed on - both during day & night.
It became quite clear that first the major axis & then the subsidiary feeder roads had to be made road worthy. All available army engineer effort, JCBs & Dozers of the state government, & active cooperation of able bodied locals was the need of the hour. These task forces had to be assigned their specific sectors for clearance for any meaningful rescue & relief operation. The state power & telephone staff was to be co-opted with them to simultaneously carry out restoration work. Neither locals nor government staff was available. Reasons will be explained later.
Embankments along the Coast
As mentioned earlier, there was a raised embankment all along the coastline, parallel to the sandy beach. Astride this, numerous rows of temporary shelters had been erected by the fishermen. It is not known how many perished because, as explained earlier, many were from the adjoining state of Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal & some say even from Bangla Desh. The embankment provided adequate safety from normal tidal waves but not from Cyclonic or Tsunami waves. This embankment also protected the very fertile land in Jagatsinghpura & Kendrapara. The fishermen expected the cyclone to hit Bangla Desh as was once predicted. Thus they were ill prepared & almost all except a few who took shelter inside the inadequate storm shelters perished; swept inland & drowned, or swept back into the sea with the receding wave. This embankment was to inflict yet another long term sentence – trapping the sea water inland causing salinity in the fields & all water sources.
Human Element
The reader may ponder, at this stage, what role man had to play in the resultant disaster. Disasters of varying hues strike periodically all over the world; & victims react in different manner. Initially all are paralyzed with the shock over the loss of kin, hearth & means of livelihood. However, some display resilience to quickly bounce back to help themselves or the Rescue & Relief agencies. This was not the case in Orissa.
As mentioned earlier, the Chief Secretary, for personal reasons, chose to abandon ship at a critical stage of the monumental disaster. It was he who was to execute the Disaster Management Plan; a piece of brilliant literature that occupies a number of pages; a document that only the most literate with high degree of administrative experience & acumen can produce; a document intimidating enough to make the cyclone chose some other target. The onus fell on the able shoulders of a few officials of the Department of Home. Whether the Chief Secretary’s departure was a clarion call for all to follow, one may conjecture; because almost the entire Secretariat was also abandoned as the employees headed to their respective areas to be with their kith & kin or to assess the damage. Hardly anyone was available during the initial critical days.
Likewise, even after the initial shock effect ought to have subsided, one witnessed an all pervading mood of despondency. To make matters worse, some unscrupulous elements behaved in a shocking manner. These are briefly listed as follows:-
(a) A truck carrying the very first consignment of relief was waylaid, within Bhadrak, en route to Bhubaneshwar & its contents looted in the very initial stages of relief operation, by people who were miles away from the scene of devastation.
(b) A consignment of blankets, from a foreign agency was loaded in a truck in the airport & taken out through an otherwise unused locked gate. It is not known where they went. None came to the most adversely affected areas while we were there.
(c) Some locals reported that unscrupulous elements were attempting to exploit young girls. Many such girls, especially children suddenly became orphans, vulnerable, not knowing whom to trust.
(d) The most shocking revelation was that the so called upper caste declined to physically handle their dead. A commercial aircraft was chartered to airlift safai karamcharis from the capital Delhi.
(e) A young girl, dressed in tatters, unable to cover her modesty was in Queue to take her share of clothing. The army officer, a native of Orissa, gave her a salwar kameez. She pleaded, in English, for another pair. She was a graduate. Why I mention this is that most, if not all clothing came from outside Orissa. More was needed. The local girls of major cities & towns in Orissa, living in concrete houses, contributed little either by an organized presence, or in terms of contribution towards their sisters in distress.
(f) On more than one occasion, I was accosted to send aid to the hill districts not at all affected by the cyclone. They neither suffered the tidal waves nor flooding. Yes, they did experience heavy rains strong gale & must have suffered damage to their thatched hutments. But, they were not the ones who deserved immediate assistance. Such requests were declined - politely.
(g) As the days progressed, aid kept pouring in. Locals pleaded that distribution be the responsibility of no other agency but the army. This was needed & possible up to a certain point. Civil Administration had to take over. In this period of transition, the entire cricket stadium was chock-a-block with aid. Many trucks inside the stadium were still loaded. Outside the stadium were large numbers of trucks awaiting their turn to unload. They were cursing their plight saying that they made all haste from as far as Punjab to deliver the relief material & here they were sitting idle for several days. There seemed to be no command & control. Ironically, those under genuine depredation were left clamoring for aid.
(h) What the victims of cyclone needed urgently, almost immediately, was late to come. In this the UN, NGO, & voluntary bodies failed badly. More will be said about this in subsequently in this paper.
(i) Yet another example of prevailing apathy to the suffering of fellow citizens. During the later period of our operation I met a senior officer of Orissa. He mentioned with glee that the Jagatsinghpura-wallas were served right by fate. They, the Jagatsinghpuris, haughtily spoke of their vast tracts of fertile agricultural land & fied upon others of other districts. The truth was that those arrogant landlords lived mostly in Bhubaneshwar; the land was tilled by peasants- these laborers were the ones who perished!
Rescue & Relief by the Army, Navy & Air Force
I have seen that the Air Force is always at the scene of action before anyone else. As usual, in Orissa too, they were not hampered by impediments on ground. Their presence was palpable on ground at Bhubaneshwar & in the air over Orissa. Obviously, they were flying the VIPs over Orissa & continued to do so even during the height of our operations. I too had a VIP visit from Lucknow, my Army Commander who knighted me as the Deputy Task Force Commander! Thus, I wore two hats; one of a Sub Area Commander & the other of the Task Force.
Allocation of Resources to Task
Allocation of available resources had to be carried out judiciously in such an operation. There was no room for error; once committed resources could not be re-allocated without its associated detrimental effects. Sectors & Sub-Sectors were demarcated & tasks assigned with the following priorities:-
(a) Opening up of the roads e.g. to Paradeep.
(b) Launching Engineer boats north the above road for rescue operations.
(c) Establishing contact & communication with the areas affected & in the process gaining first hand information about the ground realities; about prevailing conditions that we, thus far, saw from the air.
As the area in the north was inundated & continued to do so because of the after effects of rains in the hill districts, Engineer BAUTs were assigned to the columns in the north. These troops did a commendable job reaching deep inside marooned areas; at times at considerable peril. On occasions, where the water was shallow they had to wade through water to deliver relief to the marooned. Some gave us sleepless nights outstretching themselves beyond the range of communication & without food for over 24 hours. It was a Gurkha unit. Much later when we were to wind up our operation & the civil administration was to take charge, a Law & Order situation emerged. Locals were up in arms, so to say; physically blocking the departure of the troops. This was the greatest tribute & honor the nation could bestow on the Army. We were touched by the faith reposed on the troops to diligently, fairly & honestly dole the largesse provided by the benevolent citizens of the country as relief material. The officers on the spot pacified the frenzied crowd sought a safe departure.
As the columns advanced to clear the roads, they confronted ever new challenges & vision of death & destruction. Though the worst hit areas were still water logged, there was no way boats could be launched; the water was not deep enough. Troops had to wade through waist deep water to reach the needy. I must record one poignant incident. I wish I could do so in bold golden words. The skies had cleared; the midday sun was exceptionally hot – quite uncomfortable for an outsider. Troops left for their tasks at the crack of dawn armed with packed lunch & water. After a particularly grueling day, one soldier sat down to have his well deserved lunch. Hardly had he opened the package, when he saw some famished local children collected around him. He decided to forego his meal & offered it to these boys.
In the Army one comes across several examples of men quickly finding a solution to surmount problems. While the officers are trained & tend to think linier, the men think laterally. When the columns were initially stumped by breached or blocked roads, they reported that locals stood paralyzed without extending a helping hand. The jawans, who were in the forefront, motivated them & that had an electrifying effect. Apart from this, the men were quick to borrow cycles from locals & probed deeper ahead to provide the vital information needed well before the column approached it. Yes, in retrospect, a few cycles with the Army columns would be a very useful means of transportation under such conditions.
Medical aid on behalf of the Orissa Government was no different from that in any other state. Here it was a shade worst. At least two Field Ambulances were flown in & deployed astride the axis just south of Bhubaneshwar leading on to Ersama & beyond. The Army Medical Corps was fully geared up to meet the kind of medical problems obtaining in such disasters. Locals, even from those areas not affected by cyclone flocked to the Field Ambulance for treatment. The local peasants were most disappointed to see the Field Ambulance derequisitioned – rightly so, as they would now be at the mercy of their own local doctors.
The Air Force took direct orders from the Civil Authority & had negligible coordination with the other two services. The close coordination with the Navy was noteworthy. The Naval Chief flew into Bhubaneshwar & spent a day with us in the Control Headquarters. After the briefing he informed us that he was directing a Naval detachment to operate along the coastal areas for obvious reasons & the Army’s limitation in this regard. After he departed, the Naval officer told me that his force was at our disposal for any task & that they would like to operate in close coordination & alongside the Army. This gladdened my heart. It was not a tall claim. He & his men took great pleasure in working alongside the Army columns, wherever they were eminently suited for the job. I had resolved to write a Demi Official letter of appreciation to the Naval Chief commending our Naval counterparts for their exemplary attitude towards collective response to a common crisis. I never could fulfill my resolve & I regret it.
Coordination with Civil Authorities
Land & radio communication was disrupted. The government was therefore oblivious to what was the actual situation. The army columns were making good progress. Vital intelligence was pouring in from all sectors. Every morning at 9 AM I had to attend the conference at the Secretariat. It was a huge hall with a large number of bureaucrats- maybe 30 or 40. I was the first one to speak & give an update on the latest situation as our tentacles were effective in the most inaccessible areas, & more importantly, we were only ones in communication with those areas on radio. (Much later, we were provided INMERSATs- satellite communication. Gradually satellite imagery was delivered to us – though not in real time – from which we could clearly see the receding waters in Bhadrak. It now seemed the nation had fully geared up)
During the briefings I could see the senior officers nodding their heads in confirmation, consternation or dismay. After the briefing I was asked about the suggested action for that day & the next. My role for the day, in the conference was over & I departed. Based on this, & their prudence, all effort was directed.
My daily interaction with some officials in the Secretariat helped me to project our requirements to bring speedy relief. Meanwhile the Task Force Commander, Maj. Gen. Kler & the Command Headquarters had mobilized more resources in terms of Army Engineers & Field Hospitals. We wanted more from the state government. We pressed for maximum engineering vehicles like Dozers, JCBs & Dumpers. The state officials were very responsive & supplemented our efforts in every way.
Consequent to my interaction with the local press, I confirmed that in & around Astrang, north of Devi Nadi, no aid whatsoever had reached. The locals were feeding on the roots of coconut trees. They were furious with the civil administration. I apprised my superiors about this & was directed to write to the Chief Secretary, which I did in rather blunt terms for which the Army Commander admonished me. The next morning as expected I was summoned to the Secretariat. The Army Commander, who was present in the Operations Room sympathetically told me to face the music. I was ushered to the Chief Secretary’s office, where two Additional Chief Secretaries too were apparently summoned. A lovely cup of tea was served. The Chief Secretary arrived & asked the other two to individually read my letter adding, “For your eyes only”. I expected to be thrown out of the window! Then he turned to me & asked, “Brigadier, what course of action do you suggest?” I advised him to immediately suspend all relief & direct the entire day’s Army, Navy & Air Force effort to provide relief for people of Astrang. I am happy to write that this was done. The local correspondents confirmed this to me. However I requested them not to put to test my temper again lest I get sacked!
Press Briefings
The number of media personnel was directly proportionate the improvement in conditions. Many of them followed closely behind the Army Columns & also were given a helicopter sortie to see the area. Thus, when they came for the briefing, most of them were fully conversant with the progress & seemed to test the veracity of the briefing. The task of briefing was assigned to me. The time assigned was 1 PM but they were there well before that. As the area was vast, the media was keen to be updated on all fronts. Initially they were difficult to handle but soon they gained adequate faith in our objective reporting. As a consequence of the mutual understanding, an unwanted relationship developed. They started to perceive me as the hero in the entire live drama.
One day I told them that the next day I would introduce to them the soldiers who were the real heroes - who did all the work. They were naturally excited. I took my staff officer, a Major of the Maratha Regiment, who was actually the GSO2 in the formation headquarters, & the Commanding Officer of an Assam Regiment battalion, Colonel Saha for the Press Briefing. I introduced these two to the media saying that these & many more were the ones who were doing all the difficult work & that I would like them to take on the briefing & answer all queries. The two officers were an instant hit & the briefing went off exceptionally well. The added bonus was that the two officers’ families saw them on the TV that evening.
It was in a few of these briefings that some local media personnel revealed to me the plight of locals at Astrang. This, I verified & consequently took the action I have already described.
Apart from the Press Briefings, I was contacted by the BBC to account for a statement I made that morning. In the briefing, I had stated that if speedy action was not taken to efficiently dispose off the rotting bodies & carcasses there could an epidemic; and that I had apprised the State Government about it that morning in the Secretariat. This perhaps was just the fodder BBC & CNN were looking for. I was requested to be available on line at 9 PM that evening. They were explained that the authorities concerned gave the assurance that necessary action will follow. That seemed to satisfy BBC.
Shortly after, Satendra Singh Bindra came to the headquarters & met my Sector Commander & sought an interview for the CNN. As expected, I was placed on the “Firing Range Butt”. His first question was a loaded one, which came after a long prelude. He was suggesting that what the State Government was doing was inadequate. While facing the camera I addressed him by his name & told him that I was here to provide aid to the State Government & not to criticize or do them down. It was not done & hence such questions may please be kept out of the purview of the interview. Apparently, he was a thorough gentleman, & I have no doubt to believe otherwise, & the interview ended. We had informal interaction during the course of which he revealed some very interesting aspects for which I shall always be indebted to him.
Satindra had hired a local cab & had been driving non stop to reach as far forward as possible. Having seen as much as was possible, he was with us that evening in the headquarters. His driver was dependent on Satindra for food. The latter, though a Punjabi, was an American. He carried food that suited him. En route the driver exhibited pangs of hunger. Satindra’s own survival depended on the driver. He doled out a fair share for the driver & in addition gave him a full tin of Baked Beans. All this was shoveled down. After a short time the driver again complained of hunger. Satendra was surprised. What was a full meal for a Marine in the US army, proved inadequate for our Oriya. The driver then explained that a meal consisting of rice was considered a square one. The irony was that most of the food aid that was flown in from abroad was junk for the locals who would prefer chana, gur, sattu etc instead of what came in. I recollect that in Bihar, the local administration kept this in mind & supplied precisely what the locals prefer i.e. chana, gur, sattu, candles, matches, etc – items of dire necessity in water proof bags. Will the UN & other agencies ensure that they study the basic food habits of the people they wish to assist?
Often I traveled by road into the affected areas. I had never before seen such appalling sights. The village Ersama, like very other village in the Cyclone affected area, was surrounded by knee deep water. The sun shone bright & hot. Humidity added to the prevailing misery. Potable drinking water was not available or scarce. Carcasses of bovine creatures lay within yards of the devastated hutments. They added to the overall stench of the stagnant water. A woman crouched near the stagnant water cleaning her utensils & filling water for cooking. A dead body lay close by. I apprised the authorities about this & urged them to take immediate action to efficiently dispose the dead – humans & animals. This would require JCBs, Dozers, kerosene oil (for incinerating) & manpower. If this was not done urgently, there could an epidemic. I made the mistake of mentioning this in the 1 PM Press Conference. BBC was quick to react & wanted me on line at 9 PM. My Task Force Commander was naturally agitated. At the appointed time I was on line. They wanted specifics on the expected epidemic. I put their apprehensions to rest by sharing the knowledge that the State Government had ordered mobilization of JCBs & issue of kerosene oil. Indeed, I did see the work in progress but as expected it was done half-heartedly. Carcasses were partially burnt & buried. At least some action was taken.
Role of NGOs
A written account on the aftermath of Orissa Cyclone cannot be complete without the mention of the role played by NGOs & several voluntary organizations. Not only did the relief material pour in from different parts of the country, volunteers of various hues were visible all over. They apparently had their priorities correct & set about removing & disposing the dead. Almost all wore masks, to ward off the stench, & gloves to handle the carcasses. I must mention here that the only ones who did not use masks or gloves were from the RSS.
In the relief work were volunteers from almost all religious organizations – Hindus, Sikhs, Christians. All of them made their presence felt & rendered valuable service. On many occasions they approached us to seek the most severely affected areas so that their services were judiciously deployed. Two members, of western origin, from the ISKCON too visited our headquarters to provide help. All served those suffering with missionary zeal. I even had the pleasure of receiving & briefing the staff the internationally famous organization called Medicine sans Frontiers. OXFAM too had arrived but I never interacted with them or saw them while I was there. I strongly recommend that a single agency of the Government should canalize such effort so that each is able to do a complete & thorough job under coordination of the Government at the Centre.
Imminent Problems Faced by the Orissa Government
As soon as the state administration felt confident of handling the situation, they started the process of de-requisitioning in phased manner. This local populace did not like this. The army was happy to be called back to their barracks. The quantum of aid lying in the Cricket Stadium needed proper planning for distribution. Apart from this, it is imperative that the local government regain control & confidence of the people. Though the Armed Forces had performed a daunting task, the task of the Government after this was going to be equally difficult. Relief & Rescue almost over, the task of Rehabilitation was going to be a challenging one.
Shelters
The immediate & most urgent requirement of the locals was a shelter. Obviously, proper shelters would take time to transport & erect. The immediate need of the hour was poly sheets for protection against rain & sun. Overseas agencies, in their wisdom decided not to fly in this item; they presumed that it would be available within India. It made sense. However they underestimated the business acumen of us Indians. All stocks went underground. None were available! They were available in black. So, the Cyclone victims were the victims of their own citizens. For a very long time locals clamored for these sheets. None were forthcoming. (It happens in war too. The wily merchant/businessman makes essential goods scarce to make profit on the sideline while the going is good. Arms manufacturers & supplier do the same on a larger scale.)
Potable Water
Sea water had flooded all water sources. There was no potable water. Who would provide this bare human necessity & for how long? Most of the areas were still inaccessible. Water tankers if any, if pressed to service would be able to access only the fringes. A massive campaign would have to be undertaken to bore fresh wells at pre-designated sites to provide immediate succor.
Desalination of soil
There was no way dredging could be done over such a vast area. It was left to the elements of nature to dry the entire area; this took a long time. But, how would the locals restore the fertility of the erstwhile highly productive areas? I still wonder. In case the land remained adversely affected by the sea water, how long did it take for it to be restored to its productive state – with or without Government intervention? Associated with this is the problem of seeds for sowing as the available stocks with the locals were destroyed.
Compensation
Who would get the monetary & material compensation & on what basis? Hardly any one survived in the worst hit areas. Many were lone survivors. Some were children who were huddled inside the cyclone shelters. In a way every one was orphaned in one way or the other. Verification of claimants would be a daunting task. The Revenue officials would literally play the role of God – or the Devil! There would be no trace of any land documents with the survivors.
Who owned a mud & wattle/thatched hut? Who owned a house with a brick wall with a thatched roof & who owned a concrete house? Who owned cattle & how many? Would the compensation be on a uniform scale for everyone across the board?
The first assistance the survivors needed, to start the difficult journey to self reliance is livestock. After all they, almost all, had cows, buffaloes, bullocks etc. None of these survived. The Government must provide these at whatever arrangement – free or on some easy installments or heavily subsidized. I heard the matter being discussed while I was there. There was a suggestion that bullocks were most essential – to plough the fields once the salinity problem was solved. Where would they come from? Someone suggested that they would be brought from other states. Would these creatures quickly adapt themselves to the local humid conditions? I wonder, in retrospect, how the locals procured cattle for themselves or, to put it correctly, how the Government assisted in providing them because milk & milk products are daily necessities of the rural folk.
This aspect of cattle brings forth another allied problem – fodder. Since all vegetation had been destroyed or rendered useless, where would the fodder come from? Again someone suggested that it would come from neighboring states. In this grim discussion on a somber occasion there was a brief humorous interlude. The reason was – fodder from Bihar!
Surely, the peasants must have owned some poultry in every household. Shouldn’t some immediate steps be taken to provide them with some roosters & hens so that they are provided some immediate means to feed themselves?
Orphans
What was the mechanism within the armory of the State Government to take care of the orphans, infants & young girls – not that the elderly old & infirm did not need care & rehabilitation? The former needed more care because I had heard of some cases of attempted molestation & trafficking. Who would be entrusted with their care - that too on a long term basis? It is very easy & elevating to go to such areas for short durations & return to the safe & secure environment where we live. To stay longer in the devastated areas to rehabilitate, to provide emotional support, to alleviate the mental trauma, to finally secure a profitable qualification & job & marriage is another cup of tea. Obviously this can be done, & must be done by the locals themselves for obvious reasons as outside agencies & volunteers must return to their own jobs & businesses. I wonder how well this aspect was looked after. I am fully aware of the fact that many voluntary organizations perform best when under the arc lights of the media. Once this is absent, the same humanitarian job loses its sheen & glamour. Some NGOs collect adequate data & visuals to meet their requirements of further funding. Their reports are impressive & statistics voluminous. It would be interesting to carry out a ground audit of their claims to have bored wells etc.
Education
Local schools & colleges were disrupted. Students lost al their books & perhaps their notebooks too. The young lady I mentioned earlier in this article was doing her graduation. She had lost all her family members. She was, at that moment in dire need of clothes to protect her modesty. Who would provide her books & the college fees? Like her, there were many students who shared the same plight. How did the Government overcome this problem, or did they? How long did it take for normal schools & colleges to resume functioning?
Construction of Cyclone Shelters
Did you read The Seventh Secret by Irving Wallace? If you have time, do read it. You will appreciate what I intend to convey. Hitler is said to have created underground structures, for himself, at seven places. Well, I don’t imply that the Orissa State Government create subterranean townships at prohibitive cost. Instead, strong & fully self sufficient Cyclone shelter domes should be created after a Systems Analysis in the Cyclone affected areas based on past experience. In this manner precious lives of citizens & livestock can be saved.
Medical Cover
The initial medical cover was provided by the Army Field Hospitals. I remember at least two such units were flown in & deployed. One was deployed short of Ersama. When we left, these units stayed on a little longer. Their hands were full with patients streaming in, not only from the east but also from the west! However this medical assistance was needed right till normalcy was restored. Locals had to be immunized against the kind of infection that accompanies contaminated water, poor sanitation, mal-nourishment, heat & high humidity etc. Infants required proper nourishment while women needed pre& post natal care. This was an awesome task that needed monitoring at the highest possible level.
All the aforementioned actions had to be taken by the State Government on a war footing so as to provide the basic infrastructure well before the onset of the forthcoming monsoon season. The reader will appreciate that not all was possible within this time frame though work had started in earnest.
Regeneration of Vegetation
Concurrent action would have to be taken to provide coconut saplings for plantation as all standing trees had been leveled in the manner described earlier. Whatever forest cover there was had been either destroyed or had suffered serious damage. All this would need immediate attention of the Government.
I do not know if Mangrove growth along the coast, in certain areas, had been cleared in the past for prawn cultivation. I heard some wise people comment about the important role played by Mangrove swamps in mitigating the otherwise violent impact of any cyclone or tsunami.
Early Warning System
Unless all available warning systems are integrated to provide real time information to the people, human lives will be lost in such like disasters. Where & how did we go wrong in our estimates & predictions in Orissa? Even if the threat appeared to be veering off towards the North, there was no harm in taking precautionary measures. In such cases on should err on the plus side. I would go further to state that in such cases one should view the situation as a pessimist. Many readers may not concur with my observation in this regard.
Conclusion
This brings me to the end of my personal experience in Orissa. Whenever I meet an Oriya, I rarely miss the opportunity to mention that I too am an Oriya – purely because of my association with the aftermath of the Super Cyclone. In the process I usually end up engaging my unwary victim for at least half an hour narrating my eye witness account of the Rescue & Relief Operation. My last victims were Col CP Singh & his elegant wife, whom I waylaid at Doon during the Territorial Army Silver Jubilee Dinner. To that extent I treat a Bihari to a similar menu as I was closely associated with Flood Relief in North Bihar. Just as I have penned my Orissa account, so too I have committed my experience of battling for the annual flood victims of North Bihar.
I long to return & see what normalcy looks like; how the people have picked shattered pieces of life & hobbled back to life. Various NGOs, from within & without, seem to have done a magnificent job after we left. My only regret is that such assistance did not arrive in good time; it must follow the Armed Forces’ advancing columns to based on accurate estimates of the relief required; relief must reach the needy & not the other way around. I wonder if we will ever learn from our past experience; I wonder if pseudo Disaster Managers will again dominate the show after the difficult & hazardous job is over. We referred to these loud mouthed, managers as “Disastrous Managers” in lighter vein. Have you heard the old song “Blowin’ in the Wind”? If you haven’t, you must listen to it.
I have deliberately not ended this piece by penning down the lessons learnt. I have written exactly in the manner the thoughts have flowed in my mind - of events almost eight years old but fresh in my mind because of the traumatic memories I carry. Consequently I feel I have unburdened the heavy load from my mind by sharing it with you. The entire article is in a narrative form – just as I intend. For the serious student of Disaster Management, lessons are strewn all over the script.