EHA

January 6, 2005

Government Relief Camps great help to the affected:
Things are getting back to normal in many of the fishing villages of Coastal South India. The people here are hard working. They know that the sea has always given them their livelihood. It takes life on and off and it is not new to them. Cyclones and similar disasters are common occurrences along the coast. However, life has to go on.

In MGR Thittu, one of the badly affected areas, the fishermen have been brave enough to go out on a boat, so that they can survey the damages in the island of MGR Thittu.

One of the worst affected places has been Nagapatinam. There were houses that have been covered with sand during the tsunami. 1000 people lost their life in this part of Nagapatinam known as Aryanad Street. But still the encouraging aspect is that people want to get on with their lives. When being asked on what they would prefer to do now, most of them say that they want to go back to their work as soon as possible.

School textbooks lie strewn in the wreckage. Children have died in large numbers. The survivors want to start school as soon as possible. The children are sad that they have lost their books and friends. They know that they cannot have their friends back, but certainly their books and uniforms.

Sanitation is one aspect that has to be taken care of fast. There are puddles of water lying around in almost all the places. They can be potential breeding places for mosquitoes etc. The Government has pressed on measures to make them safe.

The relief camps that have been opened by the Government has been a boon to the affected villages. Almost all the camps that we visited were well provided. Happy faces were seen everywhere. The kitchens were well stocked, medical facilities were available and the environs were clean. However, the people have to return back to their houses and that is when the real struggle starts. The work that has to be done is enormous in terms of relief and rehabilitation.