While the communal riots in Muzaffarnagar in the last three months left the city devastated, claiming at least 70 lives; the aftermath of the carnage is equally bone-chilling.
The irony is that the number of deaths in the relief camps is much more than the death toll in the riots. While 70 deaths were caused in the riots, over 100 people, including the elderly and children have lost their lives in the relief camps in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts where over 12,000 people are now forced to lead a miserable life.
lack of sanitation in the relief camps erected by the State Government has turned the area into a haven for diseases. There are no health facilities for the riot victims housed in these camps. Over 4,000 people in these camps are afflicted with innumerable diseases. Scores of people, especially the elderly and children are finding it difficult to brave the cold and the local administration has turned a blind eye to their plight. The district administration appears to be reluctant in ameliorating the condition of those living in the relief camps and the officials tasked with overseeing the arrangements have begun passing the buck.
A visit to these camps by The Pioneer on Friday was quite an eye-opener. The pitiable condition of the riots victims and total Government apathy flies in the face of Akhilesh Yadav Government’s claims that it has moved mountains for the riot victims. The relief camps are devoid of basic necessities and the people living in these camps are being forced to brave the biting cold that has taken the lives of nearly 60 children and more than two dozen elders. The people are spending nights without adequate warm clothes in makeshift huts.
Not just this, many pregnant women have suffered miscarriages and many others have lost their babies. Senior citizens are dying due to lack of medical facilities and the camps are witnessing an alarming rise in cases of tuberculosis, bone injuries, paralysis and several other diseases. Money, clothes, utensils, tents and food provided by local communities and social organisations are the only source of their survival as no relief item is being distributed by the district administration.
Many families said their names were not being included in the list of refugees to prevent them from receiving the compensation announced by the State Government after the violence on September 7 and 8. The refugees also said that several village pradhans, belonging to the Jat community, were forcing them to withdraw cases against rioters if they want their names put on the list of victims and the districts police are aware of this.
The relief camps where children have died are Malakpur, Shahpur, Gadhi, Shamli, Kandhala, Jogia Kheda, Bassi-Kalan, Khampur, Balwa, Asara, Suneti, Barnavi, Khurgan, Birpur, Dhaberi Khurd and loi of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts. The Pioneer team met the parents living at Kandhala, Jaula, Malakpur and loi relief camps where majority of deaths have taken place. Many infants are also facing threat to their life due to lack of food.
Nasrin, who has lost her new born twins earlier, said the lack of medical facilities caused the death of her babies. “I was forced to go across the district for delivery and finally I gave birth to two babies while approaching a hospital at Muzaffarnagar. Both babies died before reaching the hospital,” she said. The locals claim that around 18 children in Malakpur, 11 in loi, 10 in two camps of Shahpur and Bassi-Kalan, six in Shamli, three in Kandhala, three in Jaula, two in Khurgan, two in Bipur, one in Barnavi, one in Dabheri Khurd have lost their lives in the last 30 days. No ambulance (108 service) has been provided by the hospitals to relief camps for rushing people to hospital in an emergency.
Meanwhile, the districts administration appears to have been hit with inaction and the officials feigned ignorance about the deaths of children due to cold and other severe diseases. PK Singh, District Magistrate of Shamli said that the district administration has no reports of deaths as none of the families have approached them in this regard.
“We have ordered officials to look into the matter immediately and to take all appropriate measures to stop such incidents in the near future,” he said. However, the refugees said the district administration’s inaction is deliberate and the officials are unwilling to provide warm clothes and medical aid to the ailing people especially children and senior citizens.