Just a thought.....

Yesterday, I had the chance to see the movie "Home" shot by Yann Arthus-Bertrand. Its a movie made with wonderful visuals which make you sit up and think about the impact we are making to the earth. The message is pretty simple, we have to think about the environmental changes and their consequences in the coming years. The movie makes you think, hopefully some of us will act. We have to take a moment and realize that we are all linked, connected, what happens on one end of the planet affects all of us. 

The movie talks about the impact of climate change in Bangladesh. How the low lying areas of Sundarbans are going to bear the brunt of the changing nature in the coming years. Melting glaciers in the Himalayas means more water flowing into the bay. Possibility of water levels rising in the next 20 years in not just statistical jargon but very soon will be a reality. 

There are changes being made in the Sundarbans. I saw the reforestation is one of the priorities but it seemed to me that it was not well thought. Taking down one forest and putting another which does not belong there is not logical. The mangroves can never be replaced by the eucalyptus. The eucalyptus has become a very popular tree, not only in India but elsewhere. Why? because for paper and wood for fuel. 

Endemic bio-diverse forests cannot be replaced by a homogenous foliage. It simply does not 

work. You cannot change the rules of the game. 

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I saw evidence of this in the villages of Satjelia and Kumarbadi. Hundreds of eucalyptus trees had fallen like toothpicks alongside the village roads. These trees in fact damage the soil, nothing grows along side the eucalyptus because of the toxicity in its foliage. It drains the soil of the water - exactly what you don't want a tree to do. Instead of binding the clay soil of the Sundarbans these trees in-fact take the binding factor away. I'm no expert...but seeing the fallen trees told me they were no match for the hurricane winds. Right across the villages where the protected core forest lay, covered with mangrove trees the damage was negligible. The solution seems simple - we need to regenerate the bio diversity that originally belonged to the area. 

Thinking that one tree can be substituted for the other is major folly and scientifically irresponsible.

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There is an effort that is happening locally on the Bali island. The Wild Life Conservation Club there does replantation of the mangroves, they have a small nursery that is nurtured in the Nature Camp. So if you are going to the camp, take part in the process and plant a sapling with your name. 

But those of us who are not going to the Sundarbans, we can do our part. Lets conserve water but planting trees and shrubs which are endemic to the area we are living in. Green lawns have no business in an arid desert...the cacti have their own beauty. Its up to us to make little changes, our individual efforts will result in a collective change. We can do this. 

We can!

The movie is available on you tube till July 14th http://www.youtube.com/homeproject

HOME official website http://www.home-2009.com

-Madhu Reddy

Hindustan Times Feature on Sunderbans

This photo feature appeared on the Hindustan Times on 27th June 2009 compiled by Madhu Reddy who travelled as a volunteer to the Sunderbans.

The good doctors...

In yesterday's post Asit da mentioned the work of the two doctors who are doing their part on a island of 30,000 which does not have even a medical clinic let alone a hospital. I wanted to share some pics that I took one day in the make shift clinic.

A young volunteer, Rinku helping the doctors keep daily records.

*Subhadra (the lady on the right) volunteered her time distributing medicines and helping female patients. Her husband Arvind can be seen in the picture above on the right. Their own son of 12 was ill and would accompany his parents each day and rest in the clinic. Between their work they would tend to their son as well.*

There are plans laid out by the Samarpan Foundation to build a hospital on this island and provide the basic medical care that these folks need. My question is why is that the government has not done this. Not even a clinic. Okay, how about a monthly clinic, if not a permanent one. Why do private citizens feel the urgency and not the powers in being. Its hard to swallow the facts that people die here because of common treatable illness - which I think is a shame because we have come so far in medical sciences.  

To all the doctors who work so diligently in rural areas, to all those doctors who volunteer their time away from their families to help the needy - thanks!

-Madhu Reddy

Update by Asit Biswas

Update by Asit Biswas16 June 2009 119:45 IST
Our field coordinators Mr.Anil Mistry and Mr.Shanbhu Sinha Roy report:

1. Drinking water was distributed by our teams through to atjelia,Lahiripur,Chargheri,Jamespur and Dayapur,Sonaga & Pakhiralaya for ten days from 26 May onwards. This needs to be continued as there is still the crisis of drinking water in these villages.

2. Two doctors worked for the last seven days in our Bali health camp. Presently one doctor is remaining. These doctors and medicines sent by Samarpan Foundation have so far treated more than 1000 patients including serious ones. Even minor surgery also was conducted and WPSI interpretation Center has practically become a make shift hospital. We are hoping that we would be able to send another team of Doctors to the area on Sunday with stock of important medicines.

3. On 15 June, some members of Bengal Chamber of Commerce lead by a retired IPS officer Mr. Ramakrishna carried 800 packets of relief materials. Each packet consisted of a large bucket filled with Lungi, gamchha(towel used by locals), saree, flat rice, jaggery, biscuits and water. These were distributed to needy 800 families of Lahiripur,Chargheri and Kalidaspur of Chhotomollakhali where hardly any relief have reached. Our field coordinator, Anil Mistry accompanied the team and identified the areas and families for distribution.

4. A spotted deer strayed in Bali 9 village today. It was successfully rescued and handed over to Forest department field staff by the villagers.

5. In Bali Island 1000 ponds have been already dewatered. The Sunderbans Affairs Department and Development Board has given the responsibility of cleaning another 1000 ponds to our team today.

6. Mr.Bikram Grewal – Trustee, WPSI is going to take another field visit tomorrow on behalf of all of us. His updates will be posted on Thursdays.

A little smile...

In the few days I spent in the Sundarbans, it was easy to see that there are still some smiles left in the affected area. The kids especially have a lot to give back, their smiles offer hope and some much needed uplifting spirit

It was not easy to see so many people suffering and knowing that this suffering will not end yet. If conditions do not improve things might get worse with the delayed monsoons.If people are not enabled to earn and rebuild their lives, the suffering will continue. Among all the sadness, hardened looks of adults there were a few who smiled. We all commented that in a few more days when people will move on to other things life here will become harder, without aid, without help to rebuild people will soon forget smiles and anger will take over. I do hope collectively we do not forget this disaster, do our part in the short and long term to continue the fight to protect man and the beast in this area.

These are some pictures of those smiles I saw...

A little girl on a make shift swing...as soon as she saw me she stopped mid air but a smile got me this smile. My broken bengali I asked her if she was having fun and she nodded and said "hai" (yes)

 

On their way home...these are kids from the Non-Formal school which now is being conducted in the Nature Camp Campus.

"Didi bhalo ache" - they called out to ask if I was doing okay? 

I did not understand the little joke (Shambu da my local guide tried to translate but it got lost in the language dictionary ) but it was apparent that it bought a smile to her face. She was standing patiently in line for some relief. 

Back home in Bangalore India, I pray that these smiles of hope continue. 

-Madhu Reddy

One day at school....

One late evening I visited the local school on Bali Island. The high school building wall had crumbled away by the force of the water and wind. The Embankment near the school is currently being repaired, I can only imagine what the sight must have been 20 days back with water rising in to the ground floor of the school. Right against the left hand side of the building you see a lamp post uprooted and leaning against the building. But, its not a incredible sight, what is amazing to hear is that the lamp post was 200 ft away on the embankment. The force of the wind and water hurled it towards the building. The foundation of the lamp post is of concrete...so you will have to imagine. (Unfortunately I could not take any pictures at this school as it was pitch dark and the light was not enough)

The school has a huge crack on its newly constructed wing. The assistant headmaster showed us the gash that ran from the first floor of the building to the ground. The ground floor was completely flooded, the water taking with it the text books for the coming year. The building at present cannot be used as it deemed unsafe. Hard to determine if it was only the force of water and wind that did it or maybe the construction in itself was in question. Hard to say.

School book on the side of the road

Today, is the last day for the people who have taken shelter in the Bali High School to leave the premises. School was supposed to start June 8th but was delayed for a week. What is to happen to these folks, they do not have their huts. If a lamp post can be thrown hundreds of feet; one can imagine what happens to a hut made of mud and straw. Its scatters into the wind and with it the contents of the house.

(a little girl wandering around - in the area, would not say much when we spoke to her)

The children in such areas are affected the most. They are most vulnerable group. Physically they are prone to diseases, and mentally their stability is taken away from them. I read somewhere long back that a sense of normalcy has to be returned to the children as soon as possible. It gives them a sense of security and they are better able to cope with the effects of the calamity.

(Finally they told us they were in Class II and Class III)

With schools closed (not clear when they will open), text books washed away the future at present looks a bleak.

The other non-formal school right near the Nature camp is also destroyed. The complete floor of the school has given away. The mud floor has eroded away and joined the canal waters. Only the outer structure remains. A make-shift school in one of the community rooms is a start to bring some sense of norm to the kids.

The school floor now closer the river

So along with nourishment, medicines and clothes for the children, much needed school supplies and materials are also needed. Schools need to be started where possible, hard to do right now when there are not many permanent structures in the area. But, on the list of to do this ought to be somewhere on the top.

Appeal to the Face book group

The following is an appeal sent to all the members of the Cyclone Aila Support Group on the facebook.

Hello everyone!
Cyclone Aila stuck Sunderbans on the 25th of May, its going to be three weeks and as Madhu Reddy recently updated us from the field that in many places "there lies nothing in between the water and people – not even a single tree. It is impossible to believe or imagine that there ever existed a dike that ran few kilometers before the Cyclone hit!".

(More on her updates here )

The media has moved on to many other things and people have almost forgotten that something like Aila had affected lives of millions of people!
However those affected are still in Sunderbans and there are many reports of people moving to cities in search of livelihood and support!!

Can we get your attention for a minute?

We are about 500 people who are members of this group. Through the campaign we have raised close to 8000 USD from Denmark, Norway, India, USA and Austria. This mostly came from 8 travel companies contributing approximately about 1000 USD each. Some individual donations are on its way it seems.

Can't we (individual members of this group) donate small amounts and help the people in Sunderbans to have clean drinking water, repair their embankments, get them necessary medicines, food and a roof about their head. Imagine 10 USD / Euro / GBP or 500-700 Indian Rupees from 500 of us!! That's about 5000 USD and can be so useful for so many people! We are in the ground and we can ensure that this money is used sensibly, in a transparent and accountable way.

We are appealing to all of you once again to financially support this initiative. Donation details can be found here.

People of Sunderbans need this support. Can't you help us to reach out to them when in need?

Looking forward to seeing your support. Thank you!

On behalf of Cyclone Aila Support Group