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Relatives leave for Gujarat with a prayer on their lips

Basharat Peer in New Delhi

There was something more than the usual hustle and bustle at the old Delhi railway station on Monday.

It was uncertainty, impatience and grief.

Hundreds of passengers waited for Ashram Express to leave. They were the relatives of the unfortunate victims of the Gujarat earthquake. There were tense young men and weeping old women. They were from various states, religions and social strata.

The had only thing in common: Hope of seeing the loved ones alive.

A lawyer from Kanpur, Vinod Tripathi, was unsuccessfully trying to control his grief. His brother and family were staying at Bhuj. Vinod has been trying frantically trying to contact him. But, there is no news of his brother, Air Force Seargent P K Tripathi or his family.

"I do not even know whether my brother and his family are alive or not," he says helplessly, as he bites his lips and looks away.

Rajesh Vaghrih, a native of Ahmedabad, sells second-hand clothes in Delhi for a living. His father, mother and sister were all live in Ahmedabad. Since then he has been hooked to a telephone. Desperately trying for information of his loved ones.

Says Rajesh, "I contacted all government offices, but nobody is providing any information. I cannot bear it any more, so I am going myself to find my family."

But Mohammad Khaleel, a poor Delhiite, does not even have a telephone number to try to locate his brother and family. For his brother did not have a phone.

"My brother lives at Kalopur station in Ahmedabad with his family. I am going there to look for them. Who knows where and in what condition they are." Looking skywards, he adds, " Bus, allah ka barosa hai, aur koyee ummeed nahin hai (The only hope I have is the mercy of Allah)".

Magra village in Nalanda district of Bihar, is a picture of gloom. Around 75 of its men work in tile industry in Ahmedabad. And there is not a single word about them.

Four young men from Magra are out to locate their friends and relatives in Ahmedabad. One of them, Sanjeet Paswan, says, "Our whole village is mourning. Nobody knows anything about people there. So we decided to find out ourselves."

His grief is apparent as he talks about his brother: " Bhaiyya, bhabhi and their children were staying in Himmatnagar, Ahmedabad. Bhaiyya works as a tile-maker. We tried to find out how they are, but nothing came up. Bhagwan kare I find them safe."

Meanwhile, in Gujarat Bhawan in the capital, people are donating blankets, cash and cheques. And it was not only Gujaratis who were making donations. There were people from all communities and classes. A Sardarji was there with a cheque to help. And a woman in burqa, with a few blankets in her hands was standing in the queue.

The Complete Coverage

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

EXTERNAL LINKS
The RD Killer Quake of Jan 26, 2001: Technical details
All about earthquakes in India and their impact
India Meteorological Department's earthquake reports
Disaster relief set-up in India
Major earthquakes across the world in recent times
A post-quake volunteer's unusual tryst with the departed
Earthquake News: Web site offering comprehensive news, information and features
Earthquake site map
USGS: Earthquake Hazards Program

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