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HomeIndiaGovernanceKerala’s Kainakary village, from a postcard of beauty to seven feet under

Kerala’s Kainakary village, from a postcard of beauty to seven feet under

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A church submerged, a school that looks like a jetty and houses that may collapse — that’s what the residents of this village of 10,000 now call home.

Kainakary, Alappuzha: The only sound one can hear in Kainakary village is the dull roar of a motorised boat. The only sight one can see is of people returning to see if the water has receded and they can enter their homes again.

It hasn’t, and they can’t.

Kainakary, a village of nearly 10,000 people, is usually a picture postcard of the beauty of Kerala, with the Pamba river flowing beside it and coconut trees swaying in the breeze.

Today, it stands submerged, deserted, and bears testimony to nature’s fury. The entire village was evacuated and shifted to nearby relief camps, along with over 50,000 more people from Kuttanad in the worst-hit region of Chengannur in Alappuzha district.

 


Also read: Centre’s decision to refuse flood aid from other countries unfortunate – Kerala minister


Just a year ago, this reporter had visited Kainakary during training for Kerala’s famous snake boat races, which are held during the Onam festivities in the second half of August every year.

“Do you remember the Govenda Church you had visited? See, it is almost fully submerged now,” points out Praveen, who had proudly showed off his village last year. Today, he and his village both wear a devastated look.

The submerged Govenda Church | Rohini Swamy/ThePrint.in
The submerged Govenda Church | Rohini Swamy/ThePrint.in

The SNDP Higher Secondary School looks like a jetty, with a motorised boat parked next to it. This was the boat that was used to videograph the races. This is the boat now being used to take villagers around to check the status of their homes.

SNDP Higher Secondary School | Rohini Swamy/ThePrint.in

Several homes are still under seven feet of water, and many fear that when they go back, the buildings will have become so weak that they may crash over their heads.

A submerged lane in Kainakary | Rohini Swamy/ThePrint.in

Local volunteers saved lives

The Kuttanad region has borne the brunt of the devastation, but prompt action by local volunteers, along with teams of defence forces, helped move people to safer places.

Saraswati is a third-generation resident of the village; her house stands next to the river. She recalled the day water was released from the dams.

“We were told that the shutters of the Kakki and Kochu Pampa reservoirs will be opened. But at night, as the rains lashed, we heard the sound of water rushing. We all thought we would just drown and die. But luckily, there was help and we were moved out,” she said.

Brothers Sharath and Jithin, volunteers at the St Joseph’s School in Alappuzha, are among several youngsters who have been active in arranging relief in the area. They arranged for food and clothing at their own cost initially, before the state administration stepped in.


Also read: Behind official Kerala rescue website are 1,500 techies working for free


Sharath narrated a heart-wrenching incident: “We haven’t slept for days, as we would get calls at all times that people are stranded. There was one time that a family was moved from their house near Champakulam to Thalavady. The water entered their house there too. When we got a call, it was 5 pm. We tried to go near their place but it was pitch dark.

“We kept talking to them on the phone and told them we will come at the break of dawn. In the morning, we saw they were standing chest-deep in water. I saw despair in their eyes; I almost blanked out. We are so thankful that we could save them in the nick of time.”

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