Odisha and Cyclone Fani – A Terrible Disaster Well Controlled, But Also Ignored

I remember the 2001 Kutch earthquake and its aftermath; then the authorities had no clue how to manage a disaster of such massive proportions. When there are floods, cyclones, landslides and other natural calamities in India, the state apparatus is often found ill-equipped to handle the situation and various limbs of the military are pressed into service for rescue and relief. The recent extreme weather event in Odisha – cyclone Fani – has been a departure from that norm. However, there is little or no attention given either to the large-scale damage done by the cyclone or to the way the government machinery swung into action quickly and efficiently potentially saving thousansd.

This satirical piece has been doing the rounds on social media; about celebrity kid Taimur Ali Khan being roped in to draw attention to the massive destruction caused by the cyclone. The piece is a comment upon the self-absorption of the general populace and their unconcern with real issues confronting citizens, as well as their celebrity obsession. While every utterance and action of an admittedly good looking toddler of impeccable Bollywood pedigree receives more attention than most bona fide celebrities, the plight of millions of displaced and troubled souls seems to matter little.

Now, I am not creating a binary here; I am well aware that this is tantamount to false equivalency. However the juxtaposition of the trivial and critical does serve to make us think. The piece serves to remind us how we are all so consumed with the electoral process that the plight of millions seems distant and immaterial to us; that it takes a cute celebrity kid to catch our attention.

Fani left a trail of description in its wake: power outages for several days, uprooted trees, destroyed homes, paralysed public transport, Rs. 1.200 crore damage to power infrastructure and water supply problems. Puri, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Khurda have borne the worst damage and the state is still struggling to limp back to normalcy.

There are few ground reports in the media about the sheer scale of devastation caused by the cyclone and people seem to have little idea how much time and effort is going to be needed to restore normalcy. The satirical piece expresses the hope that the appointment of little Taimur as brand ambassador will result in an influx of journalists into the disaster region and call attention to the situation on the ground. Apparently, Taimur is the only bigger newsmaker than the top contenders in the electoral fray.

This has been the biggest cyclone to have hit the region in two decades, however, there have been comparatively fewer causalities than would otherwise have been the case. Another aspect that has not received due attention is the exemplary way in which state machinery swung into action. While early warnings were issued, over one million people were evacuated to safer places, potentially saving thousands of lives. This amazing feat was managed within days and as many as 4,000 storm shelters have been set up. While it is true that the coastal state is used to surviving extreme weather events it is also true that it is one of India’s poorer states. In light of this, the swift and efficient, lifesaving response of the government deserves kudos and due acknowledgement.

There are many of course who have come swiftly to the aid of those impacted by the cyclone. For instance, the Khalsa Aid team were quickly on the job providing necessities to those who were worst affected. The United Nation has also commended the state’s swift response and effective action to contain the damage. So there is certainly cause for cheer – people are helping and things could have been much worse.

However, the apathy of the general populace to a tragedy of such massive proportions is something we must question ourselves about. The media’s reluctance to report positive news about the authorities is also troubling. Sensationalism, celebrity, strife… are these the only things that people want to know about? I think not. I also want to know when our governments and civic authorities do things right. I want to know when lives have been saved and want to know positive stories about regular people who aren’t either celebrities or the rich and powerful.