Nagore Village Ignored - Immediate Help Needed

Neglect By Authorities
Wednesday, December 29, 2004 (Nagore village, Nagappatinam)

Even as senior political leaders continue to visit the tsunami-affected areas, villages just a few kilometers from their itineraries are being totally ignored by government officials.

In such villages, which are off the maps of VIP visits, there is a danger of breakout of diseases.Angry voices greet visitors at Nagore, a village 10 km from the coastal town of Nagappatinam. T

his area is among the worst-affected by Sunday's earthquake-induced sea waves - the death toll in the area has been put at 2,300.

"For three days no one bothered to come here. Not even the collector or any government officials. How can we manage on our own?" said a resident of the area.

Death and destruction

Walking into the village, one encounters the sight of women crying out in despair amid the unbearable stench of death and destruction.Everywhere there are signs of the same devastation.

Villagers carried away a box with the body of a one-year-old baby – in a disfigured and decayed state.Three days after the disaster, Nagore is still strewn with bodies that are waiting to be picked up. Armed with masks, the local people are trying to separate the dead bodies that are mingled with the dead fish on the shore.

Just few metres away, children were scraping a coconut – their meal of the day.

Trying times

And while there is water everywhere, there is hardly a drop to drink. A man was seen washing his hands in a pond that had a dead animal in it. "There is no water in the village. Some volunteers brought us water but even they have run out of supplies," said a woman. Away from the villages, many have sought shelter in the local dargah.

Places like Nagore are in desperate need of help.The survivors of Sunday's tsunamis, who are now crowded into community shelters, need not just food, water and medicines.They also need volunteers to assist them in going back to their villages to clear the deadly debris that are lying unattended. And could cause a potential epidemic.

Supriya Sharma
Source : NDTV