Nita Ambani’s gesture for Uttarakhand
Rudraprayag, September 27, 2013: Nita Ambani, the wife of Reliance Industries owner Mukesh Ambani, distributed aid and study material to students in flood-hit Uttarakhand on Friday.
"(We have) decided to donate three school buildings, as I feel education is the bedrock of any sustainable society. We are looking at medical. At this moment, we have one mobile medical unit, we are looking at a second one and one static medical unit," said Ambani.
Meanwhile, students have anticipated receiving further aid from Ambani.
"Nita has put tents in our school. Earlier, when there used to be rainfall, it was difficult for us to sit in class. Now, we can sit under tents and study. We have hopes from them in future as well," said Pooja, a student.
Two million people, one-fifth of population in Uttarakhand, a popular destination for Hindu pilgrims due to its shrines and temples, have had their lives disrupted by the devastation.
The missing people, who were numbered in tens of thousands, were declared dead as several days passed by and all hopes of saving the stuck helpless died.
The floods broke roads and disconnected the valley from habitation, due to which it was believed that reopening of the pilgrimage route would be a tedious task for the provincial government, which faced attack from the politicians and civilians for their heedlessness in the matter.
Many hotels and restaurants built on riverbanks collapsed into the rushing waters, while others were buried under landslides. It could take months, if not longer, for the sector to recover.