Avtar Bhat
SRINAGAR, Sept 13: The ghost of flood haunts the people of Kashmir trapped in flood waters especially in capital city of Srinagar and those who were rescued and taken to safer places can’t believe that they are alive.
The people in the areas of Capital City whose houses were submerged in 12 to14 feet water saw death from very close as all their hopes of survival had dashed to ground. It was only after the NDRF, Army, Indian Air Force rescue teams and some local volunteers reached these marooned people and shifted them to safer places that new hope of survival emerged for them.
Every person trapped in floods in Srinagar city and its outskirts, who saw death approaching has a separate horrible story to tell.
People who were trapped in flood waters while cursing the State administration, praised some local volunteers for their help and rescue operations saying “had not they mustered courage in evicting them to safer places they would have been finished”.
The residents of Mehjoor Nagar where water level is still high and people have also cut the bundh along the flood channel to deplete the water from the area said that no one from the Government came to their rescue or provide food items to them. They said that all their house hold goods, including furniture, electronic and electric gadgets have either been washed away or perished in flood waters.
Some houses in the area have collapsed while others have developed cracks and are at the verge of collapse.
P P Singh of Mehjoor Nagar, who along a score of his community men were standing on bundh looking towards their residential houses submerged in 10 feet water said no body from administration came to their rescue. He said “the current of water was so fast that we could not imagine what happened in a fraction of second”. It was only with the help of locals that people managed to come out of their houses to safer places while others climbed on the third floor or on the roof tops.
Mehjoor Nagar is one of the localities in Srinagar city where the majority of Sikhs are settled. Prem Singh of Jawahar Nagar said that people never imagined that water will rise to such a level. “Though there was a flood alarm but we thought that water level will rise from five feet to seven feet and we will take shelter in second storey but within no time our houses were submerged in water up to 12 feet”.
“The people took refuge on their roof tops or on the third floor and later they were rescued to safer places by the members of majority community through boats etc”, he added.
Criticizing the State Government, he said it has failed to come to their rescue as entire administration was paralyzed.
He said two persons including a lady died in their locality while one dead body was fished out from waters by local youth the another body of a lady was fished today after hard efforts.
He said the mother and child of the lady were rescued by locals but the lady drowned in strong current of water.
“We have seen floods but not like this as all was beyond imagination”, said P P Singh, adding every thing which came in its way was washed away by it.
In Jawahar Nagar area near Usman Mosque where many houses have collapsed due to flood and turned into debris, people say that no agency from Government came to their rescue. Whosoever was rescued from the area was with the efforts of local youth and not Government, bemoaned Bilal Ahmed Khan who was repenting on the tragedy which unfolded on them. He said many houses in the locality have collapsed in the devastating flood and the whereabouts of the inmates of these residential houses are not known. Some of them are also feared dead, he added.
Pointing towards a collapsed house which has turned into debris, he said some bodies are feared buried in another house which collapsed on t the back side of these houses. “We have even no clothes to wear and some neighbours gave us clothes ”said Nasir Wani another local.
The residents of area who were sitting on bund of flood channel which separates Jawahar Nagar from Mehjoor Nagar said that they were guarding the bund from burglars. “There are no means of communication and we don’t know about the whereabouts of our neighbors and relatives”, he added.
The people have also a lot of resentment against their local MLA saying that he did not turn up to see the area to console the flood victims.
They demanded that separate tents be provided to each family for temporary shelter.
Floods paralyzed administration to such an extent that a senior police officer was seen flying in a truck while a minister in Tulsi Bagh area left in tractor without caring for the safety and security of the other employees putting up in these quarters, eye-witness said.
The floods have caused lot of devastation that at various places dead cattle were seen flowing in water. The people trapped in flood waters at Gogji Bagh Srinagar, Mehjoor Nagar, Jawahar Nagar and Rajbagh and who were being rescued by the Army Jawans in boats said that they had nothing to eat for days together.
Some ladies in Gogji Bagh area were pleading Army men to provide a bottle of water to them as they their all belongings have been washed away and their house were still in 10 feet of water. Razia a flood hit lady said that they have no clothes to wear and no utensils to cook meals. She was pleading with every passer by even journalists for help.
Another lady Shazia of Mehjoor Nagar said that they have lost every thing and what is the fun of their survival now.
Some youth were seen sobbing at the bund of flood channel and Rajbagh area asking their elders what will happen as they have lost every thing now.
While some boat men were busy in charging extra money and fleecing the people trapped in flood waters others have a human face also and they rescued people at the cost of their lives without charging even a single penny from them.
An old man and a youth throwing their own life in risk saved some Hindu families in Gogji Bagh area of Srinagar who were trapped in 12 feet water.
Ali Mohammed of Handwara who was working as a Chowkidar in Gogji Bagh saw some Hindu families trapped in flood waters and crying for help.
He made a bamboo bridge from the third floor of his house to that house in which the three Hindu families were trapped.
They brought them to his own house and cooked meals for them in the evening and next day rescued them through the help of a youth who took forcefully a boat from a boatman and evicted the families to safer place said Anjali and Rajinder Kumar the members of two Hindu families.
Anjali said their house was 12 feet in water and another residential house at its back had collapsed which made them panicky and they cried for help.
Ali Mohammed hearing their screams mustered courage and single handedly evicted three families from the house.
“Besides us he rescued 6 employees of a private telecom company who were non locals” she said.
Some PG students of GMC and Lal Ded Hospital from Jammu said that no body came to their rescue and when the water level rose in the hostel at GMC and LD Hospital they were rescued by local people. They said that the girls had nothing to eat in the hostel and some of them ate rice, sugar and glucose to pass the days. They mustered courage and with the help of some locals managed to reach SKIIMS, Soura to save themselves from flood furry. “If we are surviving at present it is not because of Government but because of locals help, said one of the PG student who was waiting at Technical Airport Srinagar to board a flight for Jammu.
She said “our Principal and HoD do not know whether we are alive or not”. There is no report with the Government about the same she added.
Even people have run short of life saving drugs as they were washed away and medical shops are closed. The Army had opened makeshift dispensaries at various places in Srinagar where its doctors are treating the patients.
An Army doctor treating the patients at Technical airport said that lack of live saving drugs can lead to any catastrophe.
Admitting that some flood borne diseases have started spreading he said over 15 patients came to the camp complaining abdominal pain.
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