The devastating cyclone Phailin, which hit Gopalpur on October 12 night, has affected more than one-third of the State’s population in 118 out of 314 blocks of the State.
Although the loss of human lives is very minimal due to the precautionary measures taken by the Government and alertness of the people, damage caused to the crops, dwelling units and loss of livelihood is enormous.
The Government has been holding review meetings at all levels to take stock of the situation for the past one week, but due to lack of proper coordination with civil society and NGOs, rehabilitation and relief operations have not yet reached many affected pockets.
One of the major issues now is to identify the affected villages and families which have so far remained unreported. Though the media has played a proactive role in identifying the cyclone and flood-ravaged villages, the role of civil society has so far remained low-key in terms of information mined and helping in relief distribution, said secretary of Centre for Child and Women Development (CCWD) Sadasiv Swain.
A five-member team, led by Swain, recently visited 10 affected gram panchayats of Kanas block in Puri district, which remained untouched by Government agencies. The team found that even after five days, floodwater had not receded, forcing people to go without food. Worse, they were taking shelter along roads as the multi-purpose cyclone centre here was of no use because it was submerged in floodwaters of the river Daya.
What is crucial at the moment is to ensure that the affected families are immediately identified, rehabilitated and provided relief.
Also, the National Population Register (NPR) should be followed while identifying beneficiaries to provide relief. It is a known fact that one-third of India’s population are migrants. Odisha is also no exception.
“Hence, the call of the hour is that civil society should act as a catalyst during this crisis to help the Government carry out rehabilitation and relief work more effectively so that all the affected people survive and stand on their feet,” observed Swain.