People's Democracy

THE devastating earthquake of January 26 as is now well known, adversely affected Kutchh, Bhuj, Ahmedabad, Surendranagar, Rajkot and parts of Patan of Gujarat. Though the loss of life was less in Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Bharuch, Gandhinagar, etc, buildings sustained major damage.

Immediately after the earthquake CPI(M) workers reached the affected areas of Bhavnagar, Siddhpur, Upleta and Ahmedabad, to help the injured and badly shocked people.

Arun Mehta, Bhupat Mer, Hardevsinh Gohil, Manekben Makwana, Ashok Sompura went to Bhavnagar on the 26^th, while Gajera, Vinubhai Dharvada, Dinesh Kantaria of Upleta, Keshubhai Thakker, Maheshbhai Thakker of Siddhpur and Devtadin, Satish Parmer, Advocate Shahbudin Sheikh of Ahmedabad visited the local areas.

An information centre was set up in a tent at the main Shahid Bhagat Singh Chowk on the same day in Bhavnagar by DYFI and SFI and arrangement made for distribution of food packets in the affected areas. The demand was made to the collector and corporation to arrange for residential tents. Members of the AIDWA made a door-to-door collection for relief items.

Hearing the very serious news of Bhuj on 26^th late night, relief items of food packets, wheat floor, rice, mung dal, clothes etc were collected by engaging trucks with mikes on the 27^th in Bhavnagar by CPI(M) corporaters Bhupat Mer of Karchalia Para Ward, corporator Hardevsinh Gohil of Kumbharwada and Ramesh Vaja of Khedutvas etc Alongwith a team of the workers from the CPI(M), DYFI and SFI the trucks were sent directly to Bhuj where the relief was distributed in the villages of Bhachau, Navagam, Bhabhar, Adasa, Samkhiyali and others. The volunteers engaged themselves in providing treatment and removal of debris. Naresh Gohel, Jitender Rathod, Firoz Sheikh and Ghanshyam Baraiya of the SFI and DYFI with the help of the local people of Bhachau, took part in relief operations and distributed about 15 tonnes of wood loaded in three lorries.

In Upleta, the SFI, DYFI, Jaycees, Footwear Association collected relief items from the whole city: 7000 pairs of shoes, 500 water pouches, 3000 buckets, utensils, shawls and blankets etc which were loaded in two trucks and sent to village Maliya of Rajkot district, and village Bhachau of Bhuj district and distributed personally there.

In Siddhpur joint relief operations were started by the DYFI, SFI and CPI(M) in conjuction with local people and relief materials immediately distributed to the affected people of Patan district. Arrangements were made for cremation of the dead bodies received from Bhuj, Bhachau, Rapar and Patan and for treatment. Medicines and food were provided to the injured patients admitted in the Civil Hospital at Siddhpur. Blood donation was also organised in particular by the AIDWA whose members also donated their blood. The blood was dispatched to the required areas. The flow of relief materials has continued from all sides.

On the 27^th and 28^th it came to the notice of our team which had gone from Siddhpur that the members of RSS and VHP were stopping the assistance near Bhachau and Rapar so that it did not reach Muslim populated villages. The relief materials received from one voluntary agency and spontaneous individual contributions were not allowed to reach minority populated areas and villages. Further, the delegation consisting of former chief minister Chhabildas Mehata, Arun Mehta of the CPI(M), leader of MCC, Bholabhai Patel, Raghunathbhai, Vallabhai of the Samajvadi Party, amongst others visited Bhuj, Bhachau, Rapar, Anjar and other villages and saw with shock that the government assistance in all the villages and cities was zero.

On the 31^st CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechuri, West Bengal minister Mohammad Amin, Basudeo Acharya, Sarla Maheshwari, Bratin Sen Gupta and Murlidharan handed over a cheque of 5 lakh rupees to the Governor of Gujarat, as immediate relief assistance on behalf of CPI(M) central committee. (Visit reported in detail in People’s Democracy)

The central committee of the DYFI has sent assistance worth one lakh rupees to the Gujarat DYFI committee as immediate relief. All Gujarat committee members have donated one days income for Gujarat relief. It was further decided to collect the funds/donations for long term assitance.

Periodic visit are being made to different villages. Arun Mehta, Madhubhai Thakker Maheshbhai accompained the team of local leaders of Siddhpur visited to the villages of Patan Taluka on February 7. Even ten days after earthquake no government officer had reached Barar village 40 kms away from the Pakistan border. Similarly the assistance from many voluntary agencies had not reached there including blankets, relief grains, tents etc. Cash payments had also not been madeto the victims. Similar situations prevailed in the villages of Bakatra, Dhamadka, Datarana and Rajuasara of Shalpur taluka. A report of these villages was immeidately prepared and faxed to the chief minister.

On the February 8, a delegation consisting of Arun Mehta, Manubhai Malwadia, Ramchandran Kiranbhai Kalawadia and Arjanbhai Shrathia visited Dasada and Halvad Charavada villages of Surendranagar district and Miayana Rajkot district consisting of Mota Bela, Nana Bela Bhavpura, Songath Moti Barad Bagsara villages.

Nearly 14 days after the earthquke not one tent had reached any of these villages; no blankets, shawls, flour or any other relief material had been sent by the government, nor arrangements made for health treatment. All the villages, though buried under debris, not a single JCB machinery or bulldozer had been allotted.

As the local people narrated, the only service rendered came from a team of DYFI doctors from Bhuvneshwar, consisting of Dr Pradip Nayak and doctors of the Disaster Management Association, who had been continuously serving in nearby villages. The government is demanding that the affected persons produce ration cards whose buildings are buried under debris. Cash relief is not being paid to those who do not possess a ration card.

While immediate relief on this count has been demanded from the chief minister to whom a detailed report has been submitted, the mass organisations - DYFI, SFI, All India Janwadi Mahila Sangh and Kisan Sangh are collecting funds from all their units of Gujarat for relief and long term assitance.