SRINAGAR: Floods in Kashmir left over four hundred dead and hundreds of thousands ravaged and homeless. The suddenness and propensity of devastation was so grave that individuals, organizations and the civil administration were all caught unaware and unprepared to deal with the situation.
The civil administration and even the organizations like Army, CRPF and JK Police were themselves so badly hit by the floods that their capacity to act as well as they could have otherwise done, was seriously hampered. The basic services such as electricity, transportation, communication, water supply, and so on were very badly impaired and even Army soldiers deployed in the vicinity of these areas were rendered helpless due to water levels through which vehicles could not wade across.
The Army unit located at Avantipur realized that the necessities such as evacuation of serious patients or ladies in the family way, charging of mobile phones or even supply of medicines and water was getting hampered because there was no way to reach the flood affected houses boats were far too less and vehicles could not ply due to silencers coming under water.
Taking the clue from the tractors, the Army personnel of the unit improvised the silencer of their stallion vehicle. Such an innovation with unusually high silencer was found working in the waters where normal vehicles could not move an inch.
A generator, mounted on this improvised vehicles and loaded with spike busters, switch boards and the basic relief material became a big hit among the locals. Later some medical personnel were also made to accompany the vehicle to undertake medical relief efforts. Locals too got motivated and joined hands with Army, guiding and supporting them to undertake the tasks as and when they came up. Number of mobile chargers fitted with the generator could help charge large number of mobile phones simultaneously; the vehicle evacuated those who needed serious medical intervention; it also came in handy to evacuate people whose houses were getting critically affected or submerged.
A similar innovation undertaken by the unit at Panjgam in Kupwara district could serve people from the low lying and inundated areas of Kralpura,Chowkibal, Panjgam, Dardpura and Dardsun. A small measure that took birth from the zeal of few soldiers and supported by the local youth, brought cheers to hundreds of faces.
Such was the force of desire to serve others that local youth too created number of rafts out of plastic, wooden planks and barrels. These improvisations made up for the lack of suitable resources or at least made up for the services that took time to get restored.
Kashmiris and Indian Army have for ages shared a common emotion; mutual distrust. But the floods have given them a chance to find something else in common; compassion and empathy. Measures by Indian Army; be it big or small, to mitigate the problems faced by the localities due to floods have brought them closer and locals are not getting tired of expressing their heartfelt gratitude to the forces.
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