Search the Internet          Tips

Callousness and caring marks Ahmedabad's quake tragedy

Swati Kulkarni in Ahmedabad

The killer earthquake has broken down barriers of caste and religion in Ahmedabad. Everyone has joined hands to rescue people trapped in the debris of shattered buildings and to recover the dead bodies.

Local youth move about the city offering tea, food and blankets to people engaged in rescue work and to the army and the police. Taher Marketwalla, a local businessman, has housed a few homeless families from his neighbourhood under his roof. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh volunteers are seen collecting relief material and offering it to the needy.

That is one face of the tragedy. Another face shows thousands of panic-striken residents fleeing Ahmedabad and its surrounding areas. Once known for its textile and other industries, Gujarat's commercial capital is almost empty now. Many of those who have been forced to stay behind are seen guarding whatever remains of their property.

Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel's warning of a fresh earthquake has only served to increase the crowds at the bus stand, the railway station and at the offices of travel and tour operators. Fearing fresh tremors, people simply gather their belongings and make a beeline for Rajasthan, which they feel is safer. Praful Patel, an employee in a local co-operative bank, said he would prefer to go to his relatives in Banswara, Rajasthan, than risk his life here.

When this reporter reached Ahmedabad, it looked like a ghost city. The only signs of human activity were seen at the bus stand and the railway station. People were seen clinging to the windows of public transport vehicles; those who could do so had perched on the rooftops of buses and trains.

Contrary to media reports emanating from here, about 125 residential buildings have collapsed in the killer earthquake. Since then, the city's residents have, with the help of army jawans, been clearing the debris and recovering the dead bodies. On rare occasions, a miracle takes place and they find someone who has survived the disaster.

Upmarket locations like Paldi, Shahibaug, Mani Nagar and Satellite Township are the worst affected; entire four to seven storeyed buildings in these areas have been razed to the ground. Angry residents have now begun to vent their anger on politicians, builders, even the media. People simply chased away politicians, ministers and officials who came to offer aid and words of comfort.

Narrating an incident in which the district collector was chased away, Nitin Patel -- a civil engineer presently engaged in rescue work despite losing his nephew and three nieces in the tragedy -- described how the collector told him and other rescue workers to do what they had to and to send him the bill of expenses. Enraged residents chased the bureaucrat away after showering him with verbal abuses.

He also recounts the visit of some women who, it seemed, were the wives of some local builders. "They came here (at Shantana Towers near Paldi; the building is now a heap of rubble), all decked up in posh clothes and jewellery. Unmindful of the tragedy, one of them jokingly remarked her husband had already thought of names for his new buildings. Her attitude made one of the youngsters participating in the rescue work furious; he hurled the choicest of abuses at her, making the women flee."

Patel could not hide his tears as he recalled how, all through the day, he had been talking to his nieces trapped in the rubble of Shantana Towers, holding their hands, giving them food, water, mobile phones and torches. But Fate willed otherwise. Preeti, who was finally rescued, could speak and was crying as she was being taken to the hospital. But, in the end, she could not make it; she died en route.

Another niece, Daksha, 15, died when the crane fetched by the rescue workers proved unequal to the task of moving the rubble. The hook on the crane's chain snapped; the resultant debris crushed Daksha to death.

Much to Patel's amazement, his Pomeranian emerged alive from the rubble. The dog is in a state of shock; it has been refusing all attempts to feed it or give it water.

In nearby Rambaug, a 18-month-old boy somehow managed to crawl his way out of the debris.

What has made people like Patel angry is the feeling that the civic authorities and builders, in collusion, constructed substandard buildings. Most of these buildings had been constructed by builders with little experience in construction. Echoing Patel's outrage is a senior police officer who stated that the builders, in league with civic officials, blatantly disregarded rules and flouted safety and construction norms.

Patel has demanded that the state government take action against the builders and advised those affected by such substandard work to file for compensation from the builders.

But the real devastation has occurred in the state's remote villages and towns where, even after three days, no assistance has reached the people. The villagers have gathered their families, belongings and cattle and begun to make their way to safer places. The national highway is, as a result, jammed with people and vehicles making their way to safer locations.

Earlier, on the afternoon of January 28, when this reporter reached the outskirts of Bharuch, she was greeted at the toll post by rumours that another tremor was likely to occur at around 1430 hours. As a result, the town was deserted; people had locked their houses and left the place. Though none of the houses have been razed by the quake, most of them have developed huge cracks. Some residents feel even a mild aftershock will flatten the town.

Bharuch's proud landmark, Victoria Tower, has been reduced to rubble. The British began constructing the tower in 1906; it was dedicated to the town in May 1912. The 88-year-old tower was used to warn the villages surrounding the nearby Mahi river of approaching flood waters during the monsoon. The tower, which was built at a cost of Rs 2,000, survived various natural calamities. Unfortunately, it could not survive the killer quake of January 26, 2001.

The Complete Coverage

OTHER SITES WITH INFORMATION
ON THE GUJARAT EARTHQUAKE:
panjokutch.com
kutchinfo.com
ahmedabad.com

Back to top

Tell us what you think of this report