Monsoon Woes
July 21, 2013: T he devastating tragedy which occurred in the Himalayan region recently must have shocked the entire world. Such a calamity has never occurred in the Himalayan history. All the people in the country possibly waited anxiously for the latest report as we did in this part. The relatives of the pilgrims on their way to Kedarnath spent days in agony. Those people had gone on the pilgrimage to worship and meditate and so who would have thought that they were destined to face such an awful fate! Even after so many days the sufferings of the people remain unforgettable. We remained glued to the TV sets for the latest report and the media faithfully reported each and every horrifying incident. People also eagerly scanned the newspapers to get the detailed news. It demonstrates how anxious and sad the people were, all over the country.
The incidents were horrifying and we learnt that monsoon woes had gripped several parts of north India as heavy rains wreaked havoc in the hill states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, while several parts of Haryana were also flooded after the water level of the Yamuna rose alarmingly. According to the newspaper reports, the cloud burst, flash floods and landslides possibly killed more than a thousand people and left many more thousands stranded, though the actual number of death toll remains unclear. Many bodies were found floating along the Ganges river near Haridwar. A Large number of people were found buried under the debris. Hundreds of buildings were damaged. Many people were missing and several vehicles, including a chopper were swept away, as reported by the media.
Apparently many pilgrims and tourists were stranded in the Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Hemkund due to landslides, forcing the Government to suspend the Char Dham yatra and Kailash Mansorober yatra. Maximum loss had been reported in Joshinath, where many had been feared killed. Many foreign and Indian people were reported missing on the Ghatsoli–Badrinath trekking route near Joshimath.
Massive destruction had been recorded across the Himalayan region, due to which over 450 roads and several bridges had been washed away, disrupting routes and leaving people stranded. Army and paramilitary forces made every effort to rescue the stranded people. They truly deserve the nation’s gratitude. The media reported that the Kedarnath Shrine was virtually submerged in the mud and slush and was not visible from the rescue choppers. The full impact of Nature’s fury was reported as visible as days of blinding rains abated after about 5 days, allowing army operations and paramilitary forces to continue rescue operations.
The extent of tragedy in the Himalayan region is horrifying. The tearful tales of the survivors are shocking. Human memory being short, perhaps after some time the tragedy will be forgotten and there will merge plane, projects and tenders and probably millions of crores will be sanctioned for construction and ever–cutting ceremonies. Then possibly some of our political leaders will be busy emphasizing the secular image of the country. Lord Shiva and Mother Ganga will perhaps remain mute witnesses to the greed and hypocrisy of man, especially the people of this country.
Till some years back these sacred spots were places for worship and meditation. Even many foreigners came to these places seeking peace. Since thousands of years people have led exemplary lives in these virtually inaccessible places. They visit these places to meditate in the midst of natural flora and fauna, where once silence prevailed. Swami Vivekananda had this experience and he said that he saw many great people in Hrishikesh. Every inch of land, every drop of water and every temple was said to be alive with spiritual vibrations. Hence pilgrims visited these places to experience spiritualism.
But now many of the holy places have turned into tourist centers. In the present age most of the educated enlightened Indians, with money and power, are interested only in cricket, TV, computer, science and technology. For them spiritualism is irrelevant. Yet there are still some Indians, who strive and struggle to practice meditation or ‘sadhana’. In spite of all the hardships they feel a kind of divine joy in their search for spiritualism. Their idea is perhaps to please God and attain liberation, which would give them perfect bliss. Not only Indians, many foreigners also visit this place seeking spirituality. Perhaps they are amazed to see how the civilized Indians are neglecting their precious heritage. Thousands of non–Indians have realized the value of the spiritual wealth of India and for that they come to this country.
Apparently a large number of tourists who visit these sacred places may be attracted by the natural beauty of the Himalayan region. But we have heard that the beautiful forests no longer exist, as the trees have been felled even in the protected forests for construction work. Even the magnificent silence can no longer be experienced, as moving trucks, carrying construction materials, blowing horns, disrupt the silence. Small vehicles also fill the roads. Man seems to have disposed what God proposed. They have robbed Nature of her huge wealth. May be, Mother Nature has her methods of protecting herself and the living beings and human greed destroy everything. God possibly is disgusted with the atrocious human conduct and has decided that enough is enough.
Illegal mining, deforestation, illegal construction, and criminal pollution have done immense damage to the natural phenomena. Whom do we blame for constant removal of river bed stones or for loosening the soil by felling trees, or for dredging the sea, or for drawing out huge wealth from earth’s interior, or for unlimited assaults on nature? The list is endless. It is obvious that man has become so callous that he does not bother about anything except his own interest.
Those in power probably do not remain alert and prepare beforehand to deal with the annual rain. It is not that difficult to cope with any natural disaster like the tragedy in Uttarakhand, with all the forecasts available in the present age. Rains are not new to these places. We certainly cannot blame rains and cloudbursts for our lack of preparedness.
The misfortune of Uttarakhand still haunts us. Tragedies happen and natural calamities are unavoidable. But destruction can be minimized by timely action and by learning from past experience. Yet this enormous tragedy seems to have been made politics–based. Already the blame game has started. Leaders of diverse political parties have visited the place of disaster, apparently to reap political harvest.
Politicians sure know the trick of deriving maximum gain from the saddest catastrophe. It is like fishing in troubled water. If the mode of national development is politics–based, we would continue to suffer. The ancient religious shrines have always been neglected by the concerned authorities. India has such centres in abundance and thousands of pilgrims visit these places each year. Yet precious little has been done to improve the condition of the shrines and the places around or to ensure safety of the pilgrims and visitors. It seems that the self–serving politicians and the incompetent officials are not the least interested in doing their job properly. The administration often makes various schemes and diverse expert committees after the tragedy occurs and after that forget all about it. They do not seem to care about the plight of the common people. That is the tragedy of modern India. Hypocrisy rules the day and none in power seems to be interested in the welfare of the country and the people.
The saddest part of the tragedy is that even in the midst of such a soul shattering calamity some people tried to take advantage of the tragic situation. According to the newspaper reports some tried to rob valuables from even the dead bodies. Then some unscrupulous traders sold necessities to the stranded people at an exorbitant price. Apparently a bottle of water was sold at Rs 100; a loaf of bread was sold at Rs 200, so on and so forth. It is difficult to believe that human beings could be so cruel and selfish.
Yet all is not lost, there is still some good in some of men. Apparently some local people and organizations helped the stranded people by providing food and water for free. It is nice to know that humanity is not entirely lost. This generosity must have warmed the hearts of the survivors in the cold Himalayan region. We must thank the brave rescue workers, the self–sacrificing soldiers, who risked their lives to save others. It is really wonderful to think that there are still some noble people amongst us.
Before the nation could recover from the shock of the Uttarakhand tragedy, another disaster hit the country. The terrorists left their first major imprint on the Buddhist town of Bodh Gaya recently, as nine serial blasts rocked the Mahabodhi temple complex and adjacent areas, sending shock waves across the “land of peace”.
Although neither the Mahabodhi temple, which now figures among the Unesco’s “world Heritage sites” nor the Bodhi tree where once Buddha attained enlightenment, suffered any damages, peace became a major casualty in the first such attack in the state. It is ironic that the terrorists made their violent attack on the temple complex of Lord Buddha, the apostle of peace and nonviolence. His message of peace spread across the world. Even today his theory of nonviolence inspires many great people. Mahatma Gandhi’s theory of nonviolence was largely influenced by Buddhism. It is hard to believe that the bomb blasts were triggered off at the holy city of Bodhgaya, which is vibrant with Buddha’s message of peace, love and nonviolence. How can hatred and violence exist in such an atmosphere?
The tragedy is that even in the midst of such calamity the political parties vie for publicity and popularity. For them mud–slinging is the name of the game. It is disgusting to note that they have no interest in the calamity and the sufferings of the common people. We feel very sad that such horrifying and devastating incidents occurred in the sacred places this year; first in the Himalayan region and then in Bodhgaya. While the tragedy in Uttarakhand was largely natural, in Bodhgaya human hands caused the tragedy.It is not known why religious shrines are attacked. Often we hear of temples being looted by unknown criminals, who are merely caught. What is the logic behind this kind of vandalism in religious places? I think only a person with a very sick mind can indulge in such seamless crimes.
All the religious places are sacred and people go there to worship and gain peace. It is not known why anyone should try to destroy religious shrines, which indicate love and peace. Perhaps we have lost our mental balance. If such heinous crimes continue, the world will certainly suffer more. We can only pray to God for peace and hope that the supreme Bring will not abandon us to our fate, and will show us the right direction to follow.
Source: The Sentine, DT. July 21, 2013.