Tsunami

 Introduction:

The Tsunami catastrophe that struck Asia on 26 December 2004 is one of the worst natural disasters in modern history. Although the major impact was felt in India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Thailand, several other countries were affected including Myanmar and, more that 250,000 people died and thousands injured. Overall, an estimated 1.5 to 5 million people were directly or indirectly affected. Damage and destruction of infrastructure destroyed people’s livelihoods, and left many homeless, without adequate water and healthcare facilities.

The Killer Tsunami had devastating effect on India, by the end of the day more than 150,000 people dead or missing and millions more were homeless in 11 countries, making it perhaps the most destructive havoc in history.

In India the waves completely leveled villages and devastated cities along the southeastern coast, resulting in over 9,000 deaths. The vast majority of the casualties came from the state of Tamil Nadu. Several fishing villages in Tamil Nadu were completely destroyed, nearly wiping out the whole population in some areas. Thousands of fishermen lost their boats and other fishing equipment in the disaster. Nagapattinam district was the worst hit region of Tamil Nadu, accounting for over half of the deaths 5,500 from the tsunami.

The people mostly affected by the tsunami were the local fishermen of the fishing communities and over 50,000 fishing vessels were damaged by the waves. The tsunami disaster has had a significant impact on the livelihoods of some of the more vulnerable sections of society along the coasts of the affected areas. Majority of them were probably at or below the poverty line and about a third may be from the underprivileged and socially excluded groups.

As many as 18 villagers lost their lives when the tsunami hit in the Modaliyarkuppam village, apart from their dwellings; many lost their very means of livelihood. “Fiber boats, oar boats, mechanized catamarans and fishing nets were lost.

When the tragedy hit the neighboring state, Jagadguru Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Mahaswamiji the pontiff of Sutturu Jagadguru Sri Veerasimhasana Math of Mysore District took initiate to extend help and gave a call to Mysoreans to stand by the people of Tamil Naidu the brother state.

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A meeting was called at Rajendra Bhavan chaired by His Holiness Swamji along with prominent citizens of Mysore, JSS MVP staff and many more social workers. The idea was conceived from there onwards to bring everybody together under a single banner to formally help/organize and to help the Tsunami victims.

The Mysore Citizen Forum (MCF) was set up with an aim to extend support and help the victims of Tsunami 2004.  Thus MCF came into existence a body constituted by prominent personalities, eminent citizens, educationists, industrialists, senior government officers and social activists, philanthropists, donors and voluntary organizations functioning in the district under the leadership of His Holiness Swamiji, Pontiff of Sri Veerasimhasana Math, Sri Suttur and President of JSS Mahavidyapeetha, Mysore.

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Vision

MCF is committed to provide relief rescue and rehabilitation addressing the problems of the people. It aims at working towards improving the quality of life of the victims who are in difficulty and need help.

A fund raising and collecting imitative began on the occasion of 1045 Jayanti celebration of Adi Jagadguru Shivarateeshwara Bhagvathpadaru MCF team visited the Tsunami hit areas and distributed the necessities  like food, medicines, clothing and so on as a immediate measure, contributed by

• JSS Mahavidyapeetha
• Sri Visvesha Teertha Swamiji, Pejawar Mutt
• Ramakrishna Ashram
• Avadhoota Datta Peetham, Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Ashram
• Ragvendra Mutt, Mantralaya
• Rotary Club
• Star of Mysore and Mysore Mitra
• Andolana Publications
• Rotary West
• ING Vyasa Bank
• AT & S Mysore
• Swami Vivekanamda Youth Movement, Saragur
• Mahajana Group of Institutions
• Vidya Vikas Education Trust, Mysore
• Lions Club, Chamarajnagar
• Sri Bhramara Trust, Mysore
• Abdul Nazir Sab State Institute of Rural Development
• Tectonics, Mysore
• Tetra Valves, Mysore
• Mahattan Associates, Bangalore
• Press Club, Mysore
• Lions Club, Yelandur, etc…

And many more organizations come forward to be part of the rescue and relief and rehabilitation effort.

MCF Committee : MCF formed a committee headed by His Holiness Jagadguru Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Mahaswamiji with the following members.

• N. Betkerur, Executive Secretary of JSS Mahavidyapeetha
• Guru
• Sri Vasudev Bhatt
• P.V. Giri
• Narendra, Charted Account
• K.M. Nagannachar, Director, General Development,JSSMVP
• M.S. Nagaraja Rao, Chairman, Rotary West
• Dhwanyaloka
• K.B. Ganathpay
• Rajashekar Koti
• Ashokananda, Abdul Nazir Training Center
• G. Mohan, Consultant
• T. S. Lokesh, Premier Computer Services
• Malikarajuna Swami, Secretary, Lions Club Yelandur
• Puttarajappa, Superintendent JSS, Pharmancy College, Ooty
• Maduri Tatthachari, Sri Bhramara Trust, Mysore
• K. Rangaanath, Bharat Icon
• H.V. Prasad, Executive Secretary, Trustee of Ganapathi Ashram
• Rajendra, President Hotel
• Balasubramanyam, President, Vivekananda memorial Hospital Sargur,
• Jagadish babu, Sankalpa group
• Ravi C Rao, CTO, Surya Soft ware, Mysore
• R. Vasudevmurthy, President, Mahajans Group of Institutions
• Vasu, Chairaman Vidya Vikas Education Trust
• Rajagopalchar, Secretary, Raghavendra Swamy Mutt, Mantralaya,
• R Mahesh, Assistant Admin Officer, JSS, MVP

The MCF committee members met every month to discuss the strategies and various steps to be taken to extend help to the victims.

“Mission Goodwill: for Tsunami Victims
 MCF Team visit villages hit by Killer Tsunami waves

The MCF team visited various village destroyed by the Tsumani and did a primary assessment of the damage and their immediate requirement. They visited, Villipuram, Pondicherry, Kanyakumari and other villages with the  MCF,selected Modaliyarkuppam village in Villupuram district of Tamil Nadu, a fishing village, inhabited by 1,000 people of 275 families and began the relief and rehabilitation work. A unique feature of this village was that it was dry village with no sale or consummation of alcohol.

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Along with the MCF members TN Yeerambu, IAS Officer of that Jurisdiction and Dr. Marudurai joined hands and supported the initiative. ABDUL NAZIR SAB STATE INSTITUTE OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT (ANSSIRD) headed by Mohan conducted a study and inspected the situation and submitted a report to MCF committee.

 Rescue & Relief

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The relief began with immediate providing shelter, sanitation and water, medical help, the MCF team provided food and clothes to the affected people and nutrition supplement and medicines to the children as immediate measure to help the community. In the initial phases people were rescued and temporarily given shelter in nearby schools and temples.

The MCF team’s first move was to repair the schools that was badly damaged and set the schooling for the children. Counseling sessions were organized for the children who were in a state and shock and mentally disturbed after the tragedy. Mr. Giri announced that the forum has raised donations amounting to Rs. 2.25 crores. It would require Rs. 3.7 crores to implement its entire relief package in the village.

The MCF team after intensive assessment of the situation came to a conclusion that to undertake such a massive relief and rescue operation it should be planned in various phases.

The whole course of action was divided into three stages.

1. Primary Relief
2. Livelihood restoration
3.  Permanent Rehabilitation

Primary Relief:

In the first stage, families and the victims who were affected by the Tsunami were provided immediate relief with food water, medicines, medical care and shelter. A sum of Rs. 50 lakhs has been spent on distribution of life kits and food material and repair of school building. Another Rs. 50 lakh has been spent for motorized boats, which is part of occupational relief.

Schools that were damaged were repaired at the cost of Rs 42, 000 schools with basics so that village children were able to go to attend schools. Regular counseling and training programs were being organized for the villages to get over the shock and help to get back to their life, the training program were organized by Abdul Nazir Sab state Institute of rural development. The training program conducted with aim to boost their morale and build confidence among the victims.

Livelihood restoration:

The primary issue in the fishing villages was how to repair the fishing boats and equipment and rebuild their lives. MCF along with the a contributions of Rs 50 lacs ING Vysya  Bank, 30 boats electric boats were purchased and given to the fisherman to restart their lives as a livelihood restoration endeavor by MCF.

Permanent Rehabilitation: Housing “Mission Goodwill: for Tsunami Victims 

In the reconstruction of permanent shelters, MCF entered into an agreement with the government of Tamil Nadu, where the government provided for the land and necessities like power, drainage, road and so on to construct the houses.

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Phase I: Mysore Citizen Forum (MCF) hand over 92 houses to tsunami victims

MCF in a meeting on July 19, 2005 gave a proposal to Tamil Nadu  government to rebuild the 275 houses that were washed away by the killer waves, the MCF singed an MOU with Tamil Naidu government to provide them land and necessities like power, road drainage and so on. The Tamil Naidu government initially gave 403 sq feet of land to build 92 houses. In August 2005, Bhoomi Puja was performed by his holiness Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Mahaswamiji along with dignitaries, District Collector of Villipuram district, MCF team and others members of MCF and prominent  citizens of Mysore, Tamil Naidu and so on.

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As part of the Mission Goodwill, on February 11, 2006 MCF handed over 92 houses that were constructed at a cost of Rs. 1.93 crores on 5.29 acres of land in Mudaliyarkuppam, fishing village were during the first phase of rehabilitation program

Although donations for the cause were collected to complete implementation of the relief package, the forum is expected to seek Government contribution. Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy agreed to hand over the houses to the tsunami victims, in the gracious presence of His holiness Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Mahaswamiji, Karnataka Pontiffs, Ganapathi Saccidanada Swamji,  Raghvendra Mutt, Mantralaya , MLA and other dignitaries.

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 II Phase:

To build houses in second phase, although donations for the cause were collected to complete implementation of the rehabilitation by construction of the houses, the forum approached the Karnataka Government for contribution. Chief Minister of Karnataka gave assurance that he would contribute funds from natural calamity fund.

The Karnataka government on 26.4.2006 contributed Rs. 336 Lacs in the reference Number KE /07/TNR/2006 part I order had been passed to 160 homes. Karnataka, Revenues, Secretary, Natural Calamity in his supervision engineer of PWD, Joint Secretary FD (Admin) and JSS Committees was formed after getting the natural Calamity fund from Karnataka government. On 21.6.2006, Tamil Naidu government gave 265 acres of land with facilities of power, UGD, roads and so on to construct 160 more houses.

During the second phase each houses were built on 430 sq feet, per block consisted of 4 houses each costing Rs. 2, 10,000 plan approved by Tamil Nadu government, the Mysore colony houses were constructed by the contractor Ratan Sabhapati.

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Villupuram District Collector along with JSS MVP, MCF team and others were over seeing the Project. JSS MVP, Dr. Sreegajayan, Honorary project Officer , Retired VC, Pondicherry Sri, Nanjudiagswamy, Observer Retired Chief Engineer, Karnataka Housing board,  Engineer Venkatesh were overseeing the construction work.

The second phase of houses were handed over to the victims on July 29, 2007 by Chief Minister H D Kumarswamy , in the gracious presence of His holiness Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Mahaswamiji, Karnataka Pontiffs, Ganapathi Saccidanada Swamji,  Raghvendra Mutt, Mantralaya , MLA, Chairman of the erstwhile Mysore Agenda Task Force R. Guru, Executive Secretary of JSS Mahavidyapeetha B.N. Betkerur and industrialist K. Narendra,  and Minister, Panner Selvam along with other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

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 Unique initiative

MCF has undertaken a unique initiative that takes goodwill between two neighboring States to a new level of construction collaboration through private efforts. The aim of MCF was to the initiative is to take the tsunami-hit community of the fishing village to a whole new plane of empowered existence through educating children, forming women’s self-help groups, and developing bio-shield for protection from future disasters.

Dr. APJ Kalam lauded the efforts of MCF

Former President APJ Abdul Kalam and VC of Pondichery University appreciated the efforts of MCF and citizens of Mysore and the People responded with unprecedented generosity in solidarity with the rescue and relief efforts of the affected communities and local authorities that gave a boost to the MCF team for their recovery and reconstruction efforts.

“Mission Goodwill was a maiden initiative and MCF hopes that the Mysore Colony will emerge as a shining symbol of fraternity and goodwill.

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