INTERVENTIONS IN LEH DISASTER
BACKGROUND
Leh, in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir of India has experienced a Cloud burst in the intervening night of the 5th-6th August, 2010. The sudden natural phenomena especially due to the unpreparedness of the communities in the villages and towns of the occurrence and therefore the lack of coping strategy became a disaster.
The devastation is to be seen all across the areas affected by the cloud burst. The gushing waters brought rumbling boulders many upto two tonnes in weight, leaving little choice for the residents except to run for their lives. The official figures are sever underestimates, with hearsay of some people being washed away as far as 40 Kms away. There still is no account of many migrant labourers from Bihar and Nepal, the work-force of carpenters, masons and casual labour.
The Aftermath
Many tourists turned volunteers overnight, giving up their trekking gear to shovels and pick-axes. The international tourists were second only to the Indian Army in their response, and get full credit for rescuing whatever or whoever could be rescued. It also b rought in drones of relief workers that were hitherto less known in the field of disaster response.
The reality however is that none of us were prepared for Leh. We ourselves were unprepared, our plans and proposals for response largely dependent on a Supercyclone or a flood or a Tsunami and to some extent to the Kashmir Earthquake. There were organisations of all hues providing food relief to shelter relief, some were into psycho-social counselling and others into medical relief. Some organisations were into establishing their faith, while some others their religion, but each of the above trying to do their little bit in the chaos and confusion.
Adding to the confusion was an initial (and to some extent continuing) lack of local leadership. This essentially again because the local organisations were predominantly into Ecology or the Green Wagon or the traditional charity based “development” work, so each knew a bit of their area, and not the entire picture.
The army with its geo-satellite imageries and units of dedicated men and women, went back to the barracks in a couple of weeks (around the 24th of August, 2010) while the GREF continues to toil and make the roads motorable by picking dump truckloads of debris by the day to be used to fill the new channels that formed or gulleys that never existed apriori. The civil administration, too has started responding by taking up clearance of debris in and around habitations, but the number of JCBs are far too less
THE PROBLEM STATEMENT
As maintained by HelpAge India earlier, Emergency work at Leh, needs special preparations given both the altitude, the “Cold-Desert”climatic conditions and shortage of staff experienced in high-altitude operations.
While there are now strategies borrowed out of experience including that on Shelter, Health, Watsan and all such other priority sectors, what we do not possess as the development community is the requisite time and person power to convert strategies into activities and programmes.
The temperatures have started to plummet, while our shelters are not yet ready. Estimates of having a two-three room, built-back better shelters have taken a beating, with the costs of material and workmen doubling in no time. For instance, Shey village, one of the villages of HelpAge intervention, is a known supplier of mud bricks, the traditional building material in the region. The village was selling mudbricks at
The administration on its part had announced plans of airlifting 50 carpenters and masons for the work. But even if one tries to be optimistic, one would require two masons with 2 labourers each to complete a house in 20-25 days. Now, the mute question that stares us straight in the face is how many houses can be completed, in the window we have. If one uses Cement and beam construction, the cement too would not set. But unless there is a fix on shelter there is little we can do on the other strategies till the May of 2011, and for the nine months starting October 2010 we would still be fire-fighting (irony is that we would be fighting not heat but cold).
What is encouraging however is that there is still optimism and some real thinking happening. One organisation from Punjab came with truck loads of construction material, their own workmen and stocks to complete Community Shelters in 6 locations and there was optimism that further more would emulate the same strategy, finances allowing.
Till such follow through is ensured and the government of the day recognises the need to innovate, families continue
Based on our flood assessment Report HelpAge India has started following activities from 19th August onwards:-
1) Mobile Medicare unit in Flood affected villages and relief camps
2) Shay Village Agricultural Land Reclamation of 44 families with 162 Kanal planning and 35 Kanal Filling.
3) Winter relief ( Dry Ration) for Hundred flood affected Families in Leh ,Ladhakh for seven months through Thiksay Cultural and Welfare Society, Thiksay Monastery .
4) One Time Emergency Support under Winter relief ( Dry ration) for 30 Residents of Mahabodhi International meditation Centre Old Age Home Leh.
5) HelpAge India Fitness and Wellness Centre in Association with Thiksay Monastery at Chamba Shopping Complex opposite SNM Hospital Leh.
6) Established Physiotherapy Centre at Mahabodhi International meditation Centre (MIMC)Devachan, Leh Ladhakh would be run and Managed By MIMC.
7) Construction of Fitness and Welness Centre at Shay Village by village committee (Half Canal land Donated to HelpAge India by Village Panchayat) and running successfully.
8) 30 Kanal land has been donated by Shay village to HelpAge India for Elders Village.
HELPAGE CONTRIBUTION[1]
Intervention Villages of HelpAge India w.e.f. 17 Aug., 2010
One of the first agencies to reach the area, HelpAge India quickly realised the challenges. Egged by the interim support received from CordAid and domestic donors, HelpAge India provided some immediate relief assistance and recovery options.
The Relief Assistance
One of the first and continuing interventions of HelpAge India, were the Mobile Medical Units. Reaching inaccessible areas were a team of qualified medical professionals, para-medics in a vehicle equipped with free medicines. The team would register patients, prescribe and provide medication and review progress. Children, women and men continue to approach the Mobile Medical Unit and the 12 sites, despite the health emergency abating, essential reason being that of access.
In 3 instances, the vehicle also became an ambulance in the middle of the night, to refer patients to the Government Civil Hospital and the Army Hospital.
Three Agecare and Wellness Centres would replace the Mobile Medical Unit on their de-induction under the Recovery Options.
One of the first reactions, for a “Cloud Burst” and floods were the plans to establish “Community (soup) kitchens” and provide for food relief to families affected.
Thankfully, it was realised that the Army with its Corp headquarters at Leh and the Para-military forces, set up the kitchens in no time and together the Indian Army, the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) and the first of local relief agencies have already satiated the need for materials like blankets, clothes and such other requirements.
The locals reported that within the first 10 days, some of the affected and even the relatively safe households, within the area affected except cut-off areas like Neemu had enough to donate!!
Based on these interactions with the community and local agencies, including the army and the local government, HelpAge India recognised the changed need for Winter relief. However, it was also a realisation that for every person/family affected, there were at the least 3 families if not five that stood in the queue.
Seven of the 11 Numberdars (selected representatives of the village community) met personally have expressed that most agencies and stocks would disappear by mid-October and that is when the actual needs and the real needy would be known. Till such periods, the Numberdars mention, the list of affected continue to grow and the Numberdars would not want to hurt the feelings of their fellow villages.
Another MoU was signed with the Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre at Choglamsar to support the 30 residents of their Old Age Home, for a period of nine months. The residents are a mix of the Aged as also the mentally challenged. The Mahabodhi Centre had taken a severe beating in the aftermath and therefore was seriously constrained in maintaining. A large portion of the Old Age Home has become irreparable and the priority for the Centre was to reconstruct that portion of the Home, so as to move the residents currently under tents back into their rooms.
RECOVERY OPTIONS
Livelihood Recovery – Land Reclamation:
As earlier stated the livelihoods of a majority of the population is dependent on the tourism industry and the five-six productive months (mid of May to Mid October). While this be the case with the youngsters who double up as trek Guides, taxis drivers and camp attendants, the rural populace is still dependent on agriculture. A conservative estimate of 1400 hectares of agricultural land was damaged and about 28000 Quintals of standing food grain crop damaged.
The recovery options therefore identified with the need for Land Reclamation. With the severe constraint of approach and resources, HelpAge India has identified Shey Village as the focal area of intervention where in approximately 443 Kanals of agricultural land belonging to 44 families was rendered useless.
Since the villagers of Shey would not be in a position to receive foreign funds, based on the realities of Indian Foreign Exchange Laws, Work orders were issued to the identified supplier of services for reclaiming the land and work started.
Exceptions to Equity and Logic:
Notable here is the inclusion of about 10 families in the list amounting to about 16 Kanals by the community to ensure that the efforts bear fruit, though some of the families can at some point of time take-up the work. In the case of one family, since there was only the patriarch there was little possibility of his investing, unless stimulus was provided. The logic professed was that once the work is started, the families would be forced to continue and reclaim the lands.
The exceptions also include the Traditional (notional) king of Shey area, the School land belonging to the Hemis Monastery and the Government School.
Emotional and Physical Recovery:-
The populations have been affected both physically (loss of property, life and limb) and psychologically with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders. The identified need was to provide therefore both medical as well as psychological recovery support. An additional need identified is the problem of the Senior Citizens in the extreme cold conditions, where the geriatric ailments especially that of arthritis, worsen.
Therefore the concept of Senior Citizens Wellness and Fitness Centres was mooted in discussions with the local participants.
It was identified that the Fitness and Wellness Centre will provide the following services.
- Fitness (Physiotherapy, Yoga/Meditation - through volunteer qualified physiotherapist & Yoga teacher)
- Health Desk (basic health check-up equipment & medicines - through volunteer doctor and traditional medicine man - Aamchi)
- Recreation & Active Ageing (TV, indoor games, musical instruments, reading material, etc.)
- Counselling Desk (psychological and other professional counselling through qualified volunteers including senior citizens).
Three vantage locations were identified for establishing the Fitness and Wellness Centres 1) At Leh opposite the Government Civil Hospital, 2) At Shey Village and 3) Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre, at varying costs and methodology (budgets sheet).The Leh Centre would function out of space provided by the Thiksey Monastery for a period of one year and a review held at that point of time if Thiksey Monastery would itself maintain the centre and the services. This is based on the principle of Build – Operate – Review. A Memorandum of Agreement has duly been signed with the Thiksay Cultural and Welfare Society, Thiksay Monastery for the same.
At the Shey village, the village community was appreciative of the input and therefore have provided for land (15 Kanals) where in the centre has to be constructed and equipped appropriately. This shall continue to be serviced and supported by HelpAge India. HelpAge India had approached SEEDS, a prominent NGO with a promising build back better option for the construction, whereas the latter had agreed only for technical support, upon which the construction has been handed over to the village community |  Fitness and Wellness Centre – Shey (Not to Scale) |
At the Mahabodhi Centre, only the minimum equipment required and supporting costs would be provided till May, 2011 after which the Mahabodhi Trust would take over and operate the services on their own.
Communtity Recovery
It is planned that the initial interventions required for Community recovery would be provided by the Fitness and Wellness Centres doubling up as entry point Activities.
It is realised that there is potential for promotion of the concept of CMDRR, as essentially this is a gap area and there is scope for action.
The preliminary ideas are of establishing the Disaster Preparedness and Management Committees at eight locations that have already been serviced by the Mobile Medical Unit as part of the immediate medical relief and where an acceptable level of acceptance generated. The eight tentative locations planned are Phyang, Thiksey, Shey, Choglamsar, Leh, Sabu, Stakna & Spituk.
Representatives of the DPMCs would be trained in the CMDRR approaches (with appropriate support from ASK) and the CMDRR plans materialised for longer term interventions.
