Editorial
from The Island - 31/10/2014
Wednesday’s deadly
landslide which wiped out an entire village burying about 200 persons alive in
Koslanda came as no surprise. Described as the worst ever natural disaster
since December 2004, when massive waves barreled across the Indian Ocean and
had a disastrous landfall, the collapse of the mountain slope had been
predicted. Landslide warnings had been issued well in advance for several years
but no action had been taken to evacuate the people living in the area, we are
told.
Worse, two more mountains
adjacent to the buried village are also said to be prone to landslides. It is
hoped that each and every family living there will be removed to safety
urgently before disaster strikes again. They won’t be able to shift on their
own due to penury and they need help. The victims of Wednesday’s tragedy, too,
had been unable to find alternative accommodation on their own in spite of
landslide warnings as they had been living from hand to mouth, not knowing when
the next meal would come or whether it would come at all. Either the management
of the estates where they toiled or the government agencies concerned should
have intervened to relocate them. Why they had been allowed to continue to live
in a landslide prone area should be probed. Mere warnings won’t do; follow-up
action has to be taken to ensure public safety.
Thousands of city
dwellers are evicted at short notice to pave the way for mega development
projects. They are given alternative accommodation. Why the people living in
disaster prone areas cannot be relocated in a similar manner is the question.
Forty eight hours have
already elapsed since disaster struck and rescue operations are going on
against tremendous odds. Rescuers themselves are exposed to danger of being
buried alive as there is no guarantee that another landslide won’t occur at the
same location. It is likely that the disaster-affected village will remain a
mass burial ground.
What needs to be done
immediately is to help the survivors left without their near and dear ones. The
government has taken steps to provide relief, but the onus is on all of us to
do everything possible to fortify the unfortunate ones and ensure that their
needs will be taken care of. Many a child is believed to have lost both his/her
parents. These children will need assistance for years to come until they are
gainfully employed after finishing their studies. Serious thought should be
given to setting up a special fund for their benefit and seeking contributions
from the public. Funds are bound to pour in from the four corners of the world
if an appeal is made officially. What usually happens is that disasters jolt a
large number of individuals and organisations into collecting funds and goods
to be distributed among the victims, who are then left to fend for themselves.
Some of the tsunami victims are still crying out for relief. Care should be
taken to prevent the same fate befalling the landslide victims of Koslanda.
Plantation workers whose
sweat and tears power the economy are exposed to landslides and other such
disasters more than anyone else because they live on mountainous terrain sans
any protection. They are mere ‘hands’ for most planters who don’t give a tinker’s
damn about their safety. Politicians, too, remember these hapless workers only
during elections. But, only very little will be done for the benefit of
survivors faced with a double whammy—bereavement and the loss of their houses.
All disaster prone areas
have already been identified fairly accurately and it is up to the estate
sector trade unions, political parties and civil society groups to step in to
have plantation workers and other villagers living there relocated without
further delay. Torrential rains currently being experienced in the hills may
trigger more landslides, rock falls, mudslides etc. Tomorrow may be too late!
