The disaster exposed how logging reshaped floodplains that are home to tens of millions of people. Sumatra is a major hub for palm oil, mining, timber and oil and gas.
Govt has been storing rations near temple where villagers who survived flash flood have set up camp. ‘If another flood comes here, we won’t be saved,’ says Dharali resident Suresh Panwar.
Situation will return to normal and supplies will start coming in once road opens, says Bhatwari SDM as rescue work continues in the region hit by flash floods.
Rescue & rehabilitation ops are still underway as several villagers remain missing since the 5 August flash floods. Local administration is supplying food & other essentials to residents.
If extremely heavy rainfall can cause such damage without a rare event like a cloudburst, it should leave the system working toward India’s disaster preparedness thinking.
At least 16 lives have been lost in flash flood that struck Dharali in Uttarkashi on 5 Aug. Independent analysis from 2023 hints that ‘hanging glaciers’ may have caused disaster.
Pilgrimages like the Char Dham Yatra have continued for centuries without turning into tourism. The extreme greed to extract commercial dividends from religion can be detrimental in the long run.
Constant stream of helicopters has been ferrying NDRF and SDRF personnel to flash flood-affected areas. By some estimates, more than 150 survivors have been rescued so far.
The collusion between the new class of bureaucrats, politicians, businessmen and trade union bosses perpetuates itself partly because of the short-run benefits and partly because they see no way out of the system, wrote author MH Mody in 1980.
IAF is firming up plans to revamp airlift capabilities with medium transport aircraft that will be assembled in India & serve as its main workhorse. Embraer is leading contender as of now.
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