Anjana to Anjali: Women continue to be unsafe in State

BHUBANESWAR: Cases related to violence against women are on the rise in the State. There are several cases coming up every day in media, but no exemplary steps have been taken by the State machinery to end the vicious trend. Except big issues of violence against women, the Opposition is also maintaining silence over the issue.

From Anjana gang-rape to Itishree murder case and Mahanga’s Anjali harassment case, there are thousands of cases related to atrocities against women, which created a lot of hue and cry in the State, but what are the end results of these cases? The State Government’s silence was clearly reflected when leader of the Opposition staged dawn- to- dusk dharna in the well of Odisha Assembly, demanding only a statement on Itishree murder case.

It is really surprising that peoples’ representatives have to struggle so hard to get a statement from the Chief Minister, who is accountable to the people of the State. Resentment is brewing among the people of the State after witnessing the deteriorating condition of law and order in the State which directly affects two vulnerable groups, children and women in the society.

Question is- when will the State Government wake up from its deep slumber after experiencing hundreds of heinous cases of violence against women?

According to the fresh data given by Women and Child Development Minister in the Assembly, a total of 9,949 women were sexually assaulted within 10 years. Out of the 704 complaints lodged with the State Commission for Women (SCW), reports of investigations into 202 cases are yet to be submitted before the Commission.

Within last two years, people of the State have seen several cases of violence against women, but how many cases have been taken seriously by the State-owned police department?

After strong demonstration and dharna by the social organisations, continuous follow up of media and sharp criticism from the Opposition party, the State Government expresses its willingness to take up the cases seriously.

Several sensational cases from Pipili gang-rape case, Madhabilata’s mysterious death case, rape and murder cases of Chandanpur girl, Titilagarh woman, Marine drive blind girl, Salia Sahi minor girl, Mahakalpada minor girl, Kisan Nagar woman, Bhubaneswar disable girl, Tigiria gang-rape to Itishree harassment and murder, the list is endless. However, the Government’s lack of seriousness in taking the right steps to punish the perpetrators and stop the trend is quite discomforting.

On Friday, The Pioneer had given a front page story headlined ‘Another Itishree who escapes from being burnt’ about a single helpless woman Anjali Pradhan whom her rival group had attempted to burn alive, but she slightly escaped from being burnt.

On Saturday, a Dalit woman from Dhamnagar in Bhadrak district alleged that a cop assaulted her sexually in front of her husband. The cop and chairman of Dhamnagar block were allegedly involved in the crime. On Sunday, another minor Dalit girl of Danarmund village under the Marshaghai police limits was battling for her life at the SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack after being gang raped.

Mahanga’s Anjali was allegedly misbehaved and manhandled by the police of her locality when she went for justice and Bhadrak’s Dalit girl was raped by the cop in the second case. When fences devour crop, who will protect the latter?

Another important thing is involvement of peoples’ representatives of the ruling party in different women related crimes including Pipili gang-rape case, Madhabilata case and Itishree murder case. In Itishree case, the Crime Branch is still searching for the culprit who set her on fire on October 27. In the three high-profile cases, the National Commission for Women (NCW) criticised the State Government and also raised questions about the State Crime Branch’s fair probe in these cases. Even the NCW supported the demands of social organisations and peoples’ representatives to go for CBI probe in these cases, but the State Government sidelined the demands of people and recommendation of the NCW. Why the State Government is unwilling for CBI probe in the cases?

If the State Government fails to take any exemplary steps to stop the violence against women, it is sure to face wrath of the people which has already been reflected earlier.

Published in English daily The Pioneer on December 17, 2013

Media must try to be common man’s voice

-- Nov 16 National Press Day --

BHUBANESWAR: Media has a bigger role to play in society and the latter has a greater responsibility to coordinate and cooperate with the Press for everything to be smooth.

The development of media from the days of bullock cart to cyber mart contains a long history of struggle with all odds. Similarly, from Bengal Gazette to today’s mushrooming of mass media organizations, media has witnessed many ups and downs with the times.

In Odisha also, from the Kujibar Patrika to today’s flash news, containing websites, media has undergone a sea change. Hundreds of journalists of the State shaped the sector to inform, educate and entertain the people in a very systematic way.

Many a time, the society has brought allegations against media that it sensationalises and created hypes. The politicians are always worried about controlling media in disguise. Now, paid news syndrome is affecting the image of media badly creating a hue and cry in the country, which fuels anticipation of anti-media campaigners for the draconian ‘censorship’. 

Amidst all the allegations, media has been continuously playing a big role to unearth many untold stories that affects the very foundation of Indian democracy. The Hypodermic Needle theory still works in the country. It is true that when a poor or hapless citizen fails to get help from the other pillars of the Indian democracy, he seeks media help in order to impose pressure and highlight the callousness or apathy of the Government and other institutions. 

From Delhi gang-rape case to Bebina and Itishree case in Odisha, from 2G spectrum and coal gate scam to Sainik deal and Hindalco coal block allocation issue in Odisha, from Uttarakhand flashflood to cyclonic storm Phailin and resultant flood, in each case, media reaches and reports the untold hidden stories to uncover truth before society.

Whether it is farmer suicide or tribals’ land and forest related issues, everywhere people want media should highlight their issues to get proper attention of national and international bodies. When the protector of the law including the State Government and the police breaches the law, public always come to the door of media expecting its intervention to unseal the veil of a corrupt Government and its enforcement agencies.

To keep its credibility intact, media should come closer to the common people with a clean image to give voice to the voiceless. Entertainment is a part of viewers’ demand, but there is no dearth of issues in the country that can be given priority over the gossips and Page 3 reports.

Hundreds of farmers, artisans and weavers commit suicide every year due to loan pressure and crop loss. Violence against women is on the rise in such a manner that parents fear to send their girl to outside home. Corruption, scam and scandal have taken a permanent place in the secret agenda of a ruling party. Education became costlier and employment turned into a dream for the youths of the State in particular and country in general. Forceful acquisition of land, violation of human rights by the Government machinery, infringement of forest rights and environment safety norms have become a regular affair for the Government and its enforcement agencies with the active funding of corporate houses. There are lots of issues in the country to highlight in the media. As we are living in a developing world, we should give priority on development journalism.

It is the need of the hour that media should stand by common people in their difficult time by becoming a voice of the people, not of the political parties or corporate houses.

According to the Rajan Committee report, Odisha is a poor State. Our performance is low in several sectors and our Government is trying its best to show us as national poor to get the special category State tag. Six decades passed, but we are still poor in the country. It is the duty of the media to unmask the inability of the legislative and bureaucratic wings before the people so that they would choose a better Government to rule the State.

Media is still a powerful estate in most of the democratic countries of the world. From eighteenth century to present days, it has a long history of bringing political, educational and economic reforms. We can find the significance of media from a sentence spoken by Edmund Burk at the House of Commons in 1879 after completion of French Revolution. Burk pointing a finger at the Press gallery, had said, “Yonder sits the fourth Estate, more important than all.”

As people believe in media, the latter should uphold their faith by connecting their voice to the mass.

Published on November 16, 2013

A month on, life not yet normal in Phailin-hit Ganjam

--Victims get more sympathisers, less succour

BRAHMAPUR: Even one month after the cyclonic Phailin that brought colossal damages in Ganjam and its neighbouring districts, the victims are yet to forget the horror of October 12 night. The district which is prone to distress migration, the calamity ravaged natives, having lost belongings and livelihood, were gearing up to move outside the State for job.

At Khatia Ramachandrapur village under Ganjam block, which was in news for undergoing massive destructions, the uprooted and damaged trees were still kissing the ground, while cattle was grazing in damaged paddy and vegetable crop fields.

Rabindra Satpathy of the village whose roof was blown away in the gale and several ill-fated villagers were jostling to narrate their ordeals. Rabindra’s wife Bijaylaxmi told her family’s miseries after the cyclone destroyed the house. They never thought that their concrete roof would be razed in the storm. “How can I build my house as I have lost everything, including standing crops?” she said, lamenting that though there was no dearth of sympathizers towards their plight, in terms of getting assistance to rebuild her house, she was getting nothing.

The villagers informed that a few NGOs and welfare organisations distributed relief and cooked food in their village after the calamity but they looked fed up with relief alone. What they badly required was money to rebuild their damaged houses. Since the village was located on the foot of a hill, the residents apprehended danger from the wild animals and snakes   “The relief given to us was finished within 15 days. The Government should now come forward to help us with money so that we can build our houses and raise our next crops,” said Surendra Satpathy, another villager whose house too was flattened by the ferocious storm.

Frustration, anger and suffering filled many villages like Raulibandha, Humburi, Barapalli, Gopalpur, Kushapalli, Panibandha, Lunguri, Malada, Borigaon, Kalajamuna, Khatiakuda, Kantiagada, Nialdripur and small towns like Santoshpur, Humma, Podampetta and New Podampetta. The residents in these villages were wary of rebuilding their houses and restarting their livelihoods. However, they were not getting any help from either the Government or any agency to make up for the losses they suffered owing to the gale. 

At seaside Podampetta village, still the water had not receded. People were repairing their houses on their own without waiting for any Government help.

B Sridhar, a villager, said the local people were facing scarcity of drinking water in the village after the cyclone and were going three km to fetch water for their daily usages. Besides, electricity was yet to be restored to the village.

   

A few fishermen said, “We lost our livelihood and shelter, now we don’t have any option except going outside the State in search of work.”  

At New Podampetta, which was shifted from the sea beach to Podagada under Ramagarh gram panchayat after 15 houses were swept away by the sea tide in 2011, the villagers looked equally worried. They had faced heavy loss in the cyclone. Almost all the houses in the village were destroyed in the calamity.

The villagers had covered their damaged houses with polythene sheets. Still the houses were looking precarious as they had been drenched in the torrential rains that hit the area after the cyclone. The affected villagers said that they could not go for fishing as their boats and fishing nets had been damaged. “We need Government’s assistance to build our boats and arrange nets,” said Ch Dandasi of the village.

Similarly, B Gariga of the village said a road to the village was totally damaged. “The Government should repair the road first to take up other restoration works,” he said.

Children are outside their school (Makeshift tent) at Podampetta

At the end of the village, tents replaced a school and an anganwadi centre as their buildings had been destroyed in the cyclone.

“We have many problems, but the basic necessities like drinking water facility, shelter and road communication are very important for us now. We have requested the Collector to solve the problems, but we don’t know when our miseries will end,” said B Sathiga.    

Published as front page story in The Pioneer on November 13, 2013

What significance festivals hold for us now, ask Phailin victims

--- ‘Cyclone, floods washed away all the happiness’

BRAHMAPUR: On Diwali, a team from The Pioneer was on a whirlwind tour to Ganjam to be witness to the ‘dampened celebration’ of the festival of lights by the Phailin-affected villages. The poor hapless villagers welcomed us amidst the ravaged landscape and pin-drop silence with lots of inquisitiveness in their wide-open eyes.

At first we reached Nalabanta village near Aska town. The village, which is 37km from here and famous for manufacturing of firecrackers, had been severely hit by the cyclonic storm and the resultant floods. When we visited the market here, we didn’t find crowds like previous years. There are five licensed and over 60 unlicensed manufacturers of firecrackers who do brisk business of around Rs 1 crore every year; but this year, their story has been totally different due to the inclement weather.

Asked about the thin crowd and lean business, firecracker seller Gopal Patra said, “The manufacturers’ houses were damaged as floodwaters from Badanadi and Rushikulya gushed into them. Water The disaster has also washed away people’s livelihoods here.”

Normally, firecrackers take five to seven days’ time after manufacturing to get ready for Diwali, but the floodwater receded just six days before the festival, as a result the manufacturers could not get time for making firecrackers. “Crackers made of palm leaves have market demand, but this year we could not get enough palm leaves as the palm trees were uprooted in the devastation,” he added.

“Also police watered the festive spirit by seizing firecrackers worth over Rs 4 lakh and confiscating 11 firms before the festival,” lamented another trader. “Post-disaster, the poor villagers’ hope of doing some business was dashed,” he added.

While interacting, a youth said that the festival lost its charm due to the back-to-back tragedies. “Hence, the firecracker market has been rendered lackluster,” he added. 

Then, we visited New Podampetta under Rambha police limit. The fishermen’s village, 44 km from Brahmapur and situated near the Bay of Bengal, was completely devastated in Phailin. Out of the total 110 houses here, 106 were fully damaged in the cyclone.       

As electricity was yet to be restored in these areas, it was near pitched dark everywhere. When we entered the hamlet, we neither noticed bursting of firecrackers nor lighting of candles or diyas. The festival of light had become insignificant for the devastated villages.

We felt the lull in the village. While crossing a street, we found a lit diya near a partially-damaged hutment with idols of Gods and Goddesses inside it. We were hailed by a gloomy person sitting in front of the house. He was B Sathiga, a young man, who has lost his house, boat and fishing net in the cyclone. When asked about Diwali, he took a short pause and said, “What happiness we have to celebrate the festival?”

 “Now we are going through a tough time with dependence on relief rice and dry foods. In this situation, festival does not hold any significance for us,” said a distressed Sathiga.

He then took us to the middle of the village where a few villagers were sitting and discussing among themselves about repairing of boats and nets. We discussed with them the issues related to relief, restoration and compensation. Meddling with the interaction, an old man came to us, shared his ordeals with us and threw many queries. The cyclone devastated his house and the ensuing rain collapsed it. “After the heavy rains, winter has started inflicting the pain. As an old man I can’t bear the brunt of the chilled air during night. My grand children and children are also struggling with the cold weather as we have no proper house to live comfortably,” he said.

Echoing similar problem, another villager B Bunga said that he has a neonatal in his home and they also face the difficulty as the winter has already set in.

We were also thrown queries from villagers regarding restoration of power supply to the villages and help from the Government to build their houses again, to which we didn’t have any satisfactory answers.

Published on November 6, 2013 in The Pioneer

Finally, sun shines over city sky

--Woes of six-day rains over

BHUBANESWAR: Finally, after six days’ incessant rains in the city and its outskirts, the sky was cleared of thick clouds with the city dwellers witnessing the much awaited sunshine on Monday. As low pressure area over north coastal Andhra Pradesh grew weak, local Met officials said, climate will be normal from now onwards.

Due to the low pressure, the capital city had witnessed heavy rains during last six days. The incessant rain brought immense hardships for the city dwellers as overflowing drain water gushed into their houses in the low-lying areas, besides creating waterlogging at many places.

The unremitting rain had literally paralysed the city and had forced the residents to stay indoors. Vehicular movement was not thick like normal days. Roads were filled with rain water. Many traffic posts were engulfed with water.

Rain water had entered into various places and colonies of the city including Acharya Vihar, Uni-8, Ram Mandir square, GGP Colony, Satabdi Vihar, Ashok Nagar, Rasulgarh, Laxmisagar, Bomikhal, Station Bazaar square, Cuttack Road and Old Bhubaneswar. Slum areas were badly affected in the heavy rain.

Situation of the villages on the outskirts of the city had faced problems when the rain water entered into the houses. Bharatpur, Kalajhari, Samantarapur and Bangali Sahi in Barang area, apart from Ostapada and Tankapani road witnessed knee-dip water on village roads connecting main roads. Even slum dwellers of Bharatpur under Chandaka police limits had blocked the road protesting local corporators’ carelessness and misbehaviour when they sought steps for draining out of water from the slum area.

City witnessed heavy rainfall starting from October 20 evening to October 27 and received record 568 mm rainfall only within seven days which was the highest rainfall than last year.

Gradually normalcy is returning everywhere as water has been receding, but the problems faced by the city-dwellers exposed the failure of Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) in draining out water in a planned way.

Published on October 29, 2013 in The Pioneer front page

Twin catastrophes shake Ganjam backbone

BRAHMAPUR: “Babu, cyclone destroyed our house and grooves having fruit-bearing trees and now flood washed away our house and ripening paddy crop. How can we live? We are shattered,” lamented Durga Khuntia of Barapalli village under Poirashi gram panchayat in Ganjam district.

Barpalli was one of the hundreds of villages marooned in the flood waters. Boat was the only way of communication to the cut-off village. Paddy fields and village roads looked as if they were an artificial lake. Flood water of the Rushikulya and the Kharkhari rivers submerged the village. Most of the starving people were waiting for the relief.

Due to heavy rainfall and flash floods, people could not come out of their village and stayed on the roof tops. Six days’ incessant rains left them in utter distress.

It was not the condition of the Barpalli village only, but an ensemble of hundreds of villages of the worst-hit Ganjam district shred the same misfortune. Relief could not be reached due to disruption of roads, but the district administration was reportedly trying to enter into the cut-off areas by boats.

According to the villagers of Podapadar, Madhapur, Baulagaon and Mahanadpur under Chhatrapur block, they never faced such situations before. The twin calamity left them in a dismal condition. Not only did the cyclone and flood destroy their houses, but also wiped away their standing crops. Another village Allihabad and Karapada under Ganjam block lost their livelihood completely. These villages are famous for betel vines, betel nuts, paddy and banana crops which faced extensive damages of both Phailin and Rushikulya floods.

Similarly, the condition of Inginati village under Bhanjanagar block in the district was also horrible. The village was marooned when water from the Badanadi and the Lohrakhandi rivers entered into it. Though the water level was gradually decreasing, they were still in fear of any untoward incident.

“We lost everything. We didn’t get anything to eat due to incessant rain. Nobody is coming to help us,” said Narmada Swain of Inginati area under Bhanjanagar block in Ganjam district.

Brahmapur city also faced the worst flood situation. Low-lying areas like Gajapati Nagar, Gobinda Nagar, Basudev Nagar and Neelanchala Nagar were inundated. Around 17 people from these lower areas reportedly got affected in diarrhoea. Sanitation problem created headache in these areas, sources said.

According to the official sources, six people died in the recent flood and near about 60 villages were still submerged in the district.

According to the official sources, 17 people (cyclone-13, flood-4) died and 25.5 lakh (cyclone- 3.5 lakh, flood- 22 lakh) have been affected in the twin calamity in the district.

Loss	Cyclone	Flood	Total
People Affected	3.5 lakh	22 lakh	25.5lakh
Evacuation	3.42 lakh	96,500	4.38lakh
Deaths	13	4	17
House Damage	1,64,629	1,79,205	3,43,834
Cow Sheds	65,371	32,550	97,921
Crop Loss	293900 ha	51566 ha	345466 ha
Cattle loss	1059	2975	4034

Besides, 4,650 hectares of perennial crops have been damaged in the district, while 1,000 hectares of lands left sand cast. Nearly 12,830 fishermen families have been affected. Fishery sources spread over 60km coastline along with 21,355 hectares of inland water fishery have been affected. About 3,404 boats in marine fishery and 6,798 boats in inland water fishery got damaged, while 10,202 fishing nets in both the waters have also been damaged. In the Chilika lake, 887 boats and 4,080 fishing nets got damaged in the calamities, said the officials sources.

When people were trying to stand straight after Phailin’s jolt, the recent floods have veritably shaken the backbones of the Ganjam people. The damaged houses could be built and the crop could be raised, but the wound may take years to heal.

Published on October 29, 2013 in The Pioneer

Floods threaten Phailin-hit south Odisha

-- Rain, road communications hit in Odisha-AP border

-- Incessant rains wreak havoc in coastal dists

BRAHMAPUR/BHUBANESWAR: Heavy rainfall caused due to low pressure over south coastal Andhra Pradesh adjoining west central Bay of Bengal created flood situation in south Odisha on Thursday.

“Almost all the rivers in the region were flowing above the danger level as incessant rains continued to lash the State for four consecutive days,” said Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra.

He said that nearly 66,000 of 129 villages in Ganjam district had been cut-off from rest of the world. Small breaches have been created at many places due to spate in different rivers including Bahuda.

After badly hit by the  cyclonic storm Phailin, Ganjam has received heavy to very heavy rainfall during last four days which has triggered flood-like situation in Rushikulya, Badanadi, Baghua, Bahuda, Ghodahada, Bagi, Lohrakhandi, Poichandia, Kanteijhuda, Batarada and Mahendrataneya rivers which threaten Aska, Ganjam, Digapahandi, Sheragada, Chikiti, Patrapur, Bhanjanagar, Hinjilikatu, Purushottampur and Begunia blocks of the district.

Incessant rains left Brahmapur city in miserable condition too. Slums and low lying areas were engulfed with water as Bahana Naala failed to drain out flood water. Gajapati Nagar, Gobinda Nagar, Basudev Nagar, Neelanchala Nagar were inundated with the rainwater, officials said.

Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) team has started rescuing people by using boats. 

Raibari Behera, an elderly woman of Alipur in Aska block, swept away in the floodwater, while three others reportedly died in wall collapse in the district, sources said.

Also disruption in relief and restoration works caused due to rains has compounded the affected people’s woes.

Similarly, flood situation was worsening in Gajapati and Rayagada districts. Many villages under Mohana and Kasinagar blocks in Gajapati district and Gunupur area in Rayagada district have been affected as floodwater entered into villages. 

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik directed the district administration to arrange free kitchens to provide cooked food to the flood-affected people in Ganjam, Gajapati and Rayagada. Eight teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and ODRAF have been deployed in rescue operation in the region, official sources said. 

Also, road and rail communication between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh was badly hit due to heavy flow of water on roads and railway tracks. Odisha State Road Transportation Corporation (OSRTC) cancelled all its buses to Gajapati and undivided Koraput in view of the flood situation.

Similarly, East Coast Railway (ECoR) has cancelled trains between Ichhapuram and Jhadupudi stations in Brahmapur-Palasa section due to torrential rains. Train services have also been disrupted between Khurda Road and Vizianagaram from the evening of October 23. As a result, long distance trains have been diverted and some trains have been short terminated, rescheduled and partially cancelled, ECoR sources said.

     

Low pressure-induced rains also wrecked havoc in coastal districts including Puri, Khurda, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Jagatsinghpur, Baleswar on Thursday. It was reported that rivers in North Odisha including Budhabalanga, Subarnarekha and Brahmani were swelling. 

The trough line which was created earlier is moving towards interior Odisha so that the district Collectors of North Odisha were directed to remain alert, the SRC said.

The Met department said that heavy to very heavy rainfall would occur at one or two places during next 24 hours. Local cautionary signal number three (LC-III) hoisted at all ports in Odisha. Squally weather with wind speed of 45 to 55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph may prevail along and off Odisha Coast. Sea condition would be rough to very rough so that fishermen were advised not to venture into the sea.

Published on October 25, 2013 in The Pioneer

Rains compound calamity victims’ miseries

An old lady sitting in front of her damaged house

--Homeless, starving people left in lurch

BHUBANESWAR: The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted that heavy to very heavy rain fall may occur at one or two places over the districts of south Odisha, while heavy rain fall would occur at one or two places over the districts of north Odisha during next 48 hours due to a well marked low pressure over southwest Bay of Bengal. Till October 25, heavy rainfall would occur in south and north Odisha which are recently affected by cyclone and flood.

The news has created panic among the cyclone and flood affected people of the State. Especially, the people who lost their homes in the twin disaster after Phailin hit Odisha coast on October 12 are living in fear and anxiety. The question is: Where they will live if rain lashes the State?

Notably, 5, 41,200 houses in 17 districts have been damaged in twin disaster out of which around two lakh houses completely destroyed. Homeless people of cyclone affected districts including Ganjam, Puri, Khurda, Gajapati and other areas are in distress after the cyclone. They fear that the low pressure rain would damage their weak walls.

Most of the people alleged that they have not received polythene to cover their damaged house, though the district administrations of these respective districts claimed that they had supplied polythene and relief material adequately.

The people of the flood affected districts, including Mayurbhanj, Baleswar, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Puri, Khurda and Ganjam are in greater danger as the low pressure may compound their miseries further. Hundreds of people are staying by roads as they lost their houses in flood in these districts. The local administrations have failed to supply polythene and tarpaulins to most of the flood ravaged people. “I lost my house in the flood. My family is in problem, but I

didn’t get any help from the State Government,” said Purnachandra Pradhan of Charada village of Basta block in Baleswar district.

Another villager Upendra Maharana said that they are in panic after they knew that anther low pressure rain would occur in north Odisha also. “How can may family live under open sky,” he lamented.

According to reports, many parts of the State including Ganjam, Baleswar, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack received rainfall on Monday and Tuesday last.

Published on October 23, 2013 in The Pioneer

Loss of standing crops leaves farmers in distress

GANJAM: We visited Podagada, a beautiful village surrounded by hills near the Bay of Bengal, under Ramagarh gram panchayat of Ganjam district to take stock of the situation after Phailin. While entering to the village, we saw a gigantic tree destroyed in the cyclone and an asbestos house of one Ramesh Pradhan near the tree was also totally damaged. Like Ramesh’s house, 12 another houses of the village had been damaged. We met some elder persons of the village. They told us about the huge loss due to heavy damage of fruit bearing trees like coconut, mango, jackfruit and cashew along with kewda yards.

The villagers said that paddy crops were affected as salty water of a canal connecting sea and Chilika entered into the paddy field. “The paddy plants, which were in a stage of flowering, were destroyed due to the storm,” said Jogi Pallai, a villager, adding, “It will severely affect the yield.”

Another villager Pabana Pradhan, a farmer who cultivates kewda flower, said that most of the kewda grooves faced the ire of the Phailin. “I can’t get a single flower this year, though I usually pluck 400 to 500 flowers everyday during the season,” he lamented.

After processing, kewda flowers are normally used for perfume and Gutkha industry. Around 20,000 acres of land in the areas Chikiti, Ganjam, Chatrapur and Rangeilunda of Ganjam district have kewda grooves. It has a good market in and outside of the country, but Phailin wiped them out.

We visited Karpada village under Ganjam block to see the condition of betel vines. We found vine yards severely affected. Most of the leaves were rotten. A farmer of the village Raju Reddy said the betel leaves were in demand and the farmers earn good money out of it, but the gale razed them all.

Notably, around 2,000 acres of land in the blocks of Ganjam, Rangeilunda, Patrapur, Hinjili have betel vine yards and the farmers sell it in and outside of the State to get good money, but the recent crop loss created a heavy burden on the farmers.

Similarly, lakhs of cashew trees had been destroyed in several places of the district. Cashew is another important cash crop in the district which has been grown over 50,000 hectares of land in Ganjam, Chatrapur, Khallikote and other blocks. “I lost two acres filled with cashew trees in the cyclone, which will take years to get its previous state,” said farmer Dama Pradhan of Podagada-Jhatipadar village under Ganjam block.

Loss of livelihood along with houses in the cyclone has left the farming community in utter distress. Electricity problem will be solved after October 30 according to Energy Minister Arun Sahoo, but the restoration of livelihood of lakhs of farmers may take a pretty long time.

Published on October 23, 2013 in The Pioneer

Electricity woes haunt cyclone affected people

BRAHMAPUR: Though normalcy is limping back in cyclone affected Ganjam district, still the harrowing night of October 12 haunts people of the district. After evening, when pitch dark paints the sky, people feel everything is silence after the monstrous Phailin razed the scenic land. The devastation of electric poles, transformers and power grid left the people of the district in darkness and supplemented solitariness of the people.

We re-visited a few villages and towns of Ganjam to see its evenings where we had spent nights before the cyclone. We could not see more crowd in the markets as electricity yet to be restored in the cyclone affected areas of Ganjam district. Villages, towns and semi-urban areas were grabbed by dark nights in the absence of electricity.

When the people were geared up for Durga puja festival, Phailin washed away happiness and filled emptiness with heavy loss of houses, livelihood, property, infrastructure and serenity of nature. The cyclone destroyed the well decorated costly puja pandals along with idols in Brahmapur which direct hit the puja business this year.   

Every year Kumar Purnima, a festival of joy for adolescent girls, has a special place in the heart of villagers, but this year Phailin looted the festive mood. As religious Odia month ‘Kartika’ started from Saturday, no morning hymns of village priest was coming through the mike due to power cut.

Due to Phailin, official sources said, power connection lost to 45,960 villages. Though the State Government has restored many villages, over 21,000 villages are still in dark. Thousands of electricity poles damaged and uprooted in the cyclone and the power grids received heavy damage in the gale.

After the devastation of power sector in the affected areas, one of the serious problem occurred for communication is mobile phone recharge. As electricity is normally needed for charging the mobile phone, people faced many problems. Family members living outside the city or State are in tension as they failed to contact their kin. Some of the electrical, electronic shops and mobile shops offer services at Rs 20 per mobile for charging the mobile battery. We saw a few shops at Brahmapur, Ganjam town, Rambha and Khallikote during our visit to the affected district.

Published on October 23, 2013

A horrific trail of devastation from Brahmapur to B’gaon in Phailin

--A rollercoaster ride on October 13

BRAHMAPUR: Having experienced a ferocious cyclonic storm Phailin on October 12 last at Brahmapur, I along with a few fellow reporters undertook a motorcycle journey on the October 13 morning to see how the monstrous storm had wrecked havoc and left a trail of devastation in the coastal Ganjam and its neighbouring districts.

As the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted that the cyclonic storm would badly affect the villages and towns between Balugaon and Brahmapur, we decided to start our journey from Brahmapur to Balugaon to get a firsthand report on the ravages of Phailin. Though the wind speed had deceased considerably, we were still haunted by fear of the wind turning frightful again.

We visited various places of the city and captured photos of heaps of rubbles, uprooted trees and electric poles and snapped wires across the city. From the First Gate of Brahmapur to the Gopalpur junction, the city wore a fearful look. Most of the old and new trees had toppled, while water was running over road from Roland Institute to Gopalpur junction as Bahana Nala had overflowed. The main road connecting NH-5 was disconnected. We looked for the shortcuts but they too had been blocked as uprooted trees kept lying over them. So, we took up a bypass road via Lanjipalli over bridge to reach NH-5 so that we could move to Balugaon.

When we crossed Lanjipalli, we got to know the death of a child at Bijipur in wall collapse and another similar case at Gosani Nuagaon in the city. Storm didn’t show any mercy to the telephone towers and electric poles and transformers. The telecommunication and electricity supply was badly hit. We visited Ayodhya Nagar, Gajapati Nagar, Lochapada and Aska Road and saw the areas in ruins. The Brahmapur railway station was also destroyed. The kutcha and asbestos houses were badly affected in the storm near the station.

We managed to cross streets of the city with much difficulty as they had been filled with damaged branches and leaves and broken electric poles rounded with wires. We touched the NH-5 and set off for Balugaon. On the way, a truck driver told that a few lorries had turned turtle near Konishi after being hit by the cyclonic storm. The wind was still blowing at a high speed enough to shake our motorcycle, in which we were traveling. But it hardly had the strength to shake our determination to move ahead and see the large scale devastations and wreckages.

The low-lying areas with paddy crops to the right side of the NH had been fully submerged. During our journey, we passed many petrol pumps beside the NH which too had faced the ire of the cyclone. With their shades damaged, most of them had shut down. We hardly saw any people or any vehicle on the road. A dead silence had reigned supreme everywhere. We crossed Jagannathpur junction and then Mandiapalli which connects Gopalpur beach via Berhampur University. Two reporters who camped at the university campus joined us at the junction. What they told about the devastation the university had gone through was shocking. The university was famous for its greenery having thousands of trees, but the storm had stripped it of its pride possession and rendered it barren. It hurt us when we knew that the dreaded storm had not spared the deer park, classrooms and hostels inside the campus of the university.

We took a glance of a high school near the NH at Chamakhandi which was filled with broken trees. Then we saw a few village roads connecting the NH filled with uprooted trees. Most fruit bearing trees had been badly damaged. We reached the district headquarters town of Chatrapur. The Collectorate and residence of the Collector had been affected. The storm had not spared a single building with asbestos roof. Educational institutions had been damaged. We visited the people in the relief centre at Onslow High School. While talking with the poor people of the cyclone hit area, we were told how the victims had undergone a harrowing experience of the previous night.        

Lorries toppled near A1 dhaba, a few km from Chhatrapur

Our team resumed journey and passed the Tampara Lake after Chatrapur. The gigantic mango, coconut, jackfruit and eucalyptus plants along NH were kissing the ground. We came across a damaged roadside hotel A1 dhaba near the lake where three lorries had overturned. Then we crossed the over flowing Rushikulya and reached Purunabandha-Binchhanapalli cyclone shelter after Ganjam town. The fishermen were about to leave the shelter as wind had been pretty slow. Taking some dry foods given by the administration, the fishermen were leaving the cyclone shelter for their homes, but they looked to be stressed with anxiety, apprehension and fear about the safety of their houses and the belongings, especially the fishnets and boats.

Trucks met a mishap at Sai Dhaba on NH-5 near Rambha

An electric sub-station at Humma had been damaged. After crossing the Palur junction, we reached severely affected coastal villages such as Podagada, Jhatipadar, Barapalli under Ganjam block. We stopped at Sai dhaba where two lorries had met a mishap. We reached Gopinathpur coming under ward-6 of Rambha NAC. Out of total 14 families living in the village, 12 kutcha houses were badly damaged. Coconut trees, bamboo and eucalyptus trees had toppled over houses. Two persons were injured due to the sudden fall of the trees, said a homeless villager Rama Nath.

An old lady is sitting in front of her damaged house at Gopinathpur

We then moved towards a few severely affected villages like Jharedi, Kantapada, Sipakuda and Madhurchua near the Chilika lake. We got to know that a few fishing villages near Sabulia were also affected when water of the lake gushed into their villages.

We were astounded after seeing a huge loss of fruit bearing trees in the grooves. Before reaching Badaghati, we saw a village road to Pana Nuagoan filled with uprooted old trees and a damaged auto-rickshaw near a huge tree. On the day of cyclone, driver T Parameswar was killed after a huge tree fell down on him while crossing the road.

We wanted to move to Khallikote, but a local advised us not to go there as the road was not clear. We continued our journey and reached at Keshpur at 9am. The Chilika water had entered into the paddy fields and inundated many villages of Pathara panchayat.

When we reached Balugaon, we found people slowly coming out of their houses. Everywhere, we saw heaps of debris and fallen and broken trees.

People everywhere were demanding relief like dry food as the people had lost their homes and belonging in the gale. Starving children were staring at us helplessly. As relief had not been supplied to them in time, angry locals near Balugaon were preparing to hold a road blockade on the NH-5.

Published on October 19, 2013