Jammu/Poonch, September 13
Doctors across the country have been put on a high alert as the fear of epidemic looms large in the Kashmir valley, especially in Srinagar city, which remains submerged in the floodwaters.

Teams of doctors at Delhi and other parts of the country are all prepared and waiting for the call to face any eventuality at this juncture. Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said this while interacting with mediapersons after convening a meeting of the health authorities in Jammu to assess the situation in this part of the state.

“There is a risk of water-borne diseases after the water recedes from the flood-affected areas of the state,” Harsh Vardan said, adding, “We are keeping a very close watch (and are ready) to face any situation.”

He further added that specialist doctors, if required, would be be deputed to Srinagar and other parts of the state at any time.

The Health Minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was himself monitoring the day-to-day relief and rescue activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Union Minister, who reviewed the flood aftermath situation of all 10 districts of Jammu province, said Poonch was the worst-affected area in the state as far as damage to infrastructure and loss of human lives was concerned.

“As far as Srinagar is concerned, 28 tonnes of medicine have already been sent to face any situation.”

He said water purifying machines had also been dispatched to provide clean and potable water to the flood-affected people of the Valley.

“I am visiting Srinagar tomorrow to assess the situation there,” he said and added that teams of doctors had been sent to Srinagar to provide medical facilities to the affected.

When asked weather hospitals would be made operational in Srinagar soon, the Union Minister said as soon as the water recedes, hospitals would be made functional.

During a meeting with the Union Health Minister, the authorities at Jammu sought to draw his attention towards the shortage of manpower in the region. “We took up the issue of shortage of manpower to face the prevailing challenge before the Union Health Minister,” Director, Health Services, Jammu, Baljeet Pathania told The Tribune. He added that the Union Minister had assured them to cope up with problem.

Pathania said the demand of medicines for water-borne diseases was placed before the Health Minister who assured them that the demand would be fulfilled within a week.

At Poonch, the Union Health Minister, who himself is a doctor, examined a number of patients who have taken shelter at relief camps and at Poonch hospital.

While interacting with mediapersons at Poonch, the Union Minister promised every possible help to the flood-affected people.

Srinagar, September 13
PDP president and Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Mehbooba Mufti today apologised on behalf of stone throwers, who hampered rescue and relief operations in Srinagar.

Addressing mediapersons after the all-party meeting headed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah here, Mehbooba said: “While I apologise for some stone throwing incidents, we need support of the entire country in these testing times.”

When asked if she was satisfied with the work done so far by the state government, Mehbooba said: “Let’s not get into it.”

“In this hour of crisis, we need support of the entire country,” she said.

The parliamentarian also made request to all the agencies and philanthropists helping the state to overcome the disaster to send relief material that can be utilised by the people.

“Please ensure that expired medicines are not sent and the people here get the material, which they can utilise,” Mehbooba said.

Omar said the meeting was held in a very congenial atmosphere and added that a positive message was sent out to the people.

“Every party was of same opinion to bail the state out of the present crisis,” Omar said, adding: “A good message was sent out to the people that if the National Conference and the PDP, the Congress and the BJP can sit together then why the rest of you can’t come together to try and help the people.”

The Chief Minister said all the parties gave valuable suggestions. “We got some very important suggestions from the PDP, the BJP and leaders like Saifuddin Soz, Ghulam Hassan Mir, Hakeem Mohammed Yasin, MY Tarigami and Jugal Kishore Sharma. We find their suggestions very useful,” he said.

New Delhi, September 13
A senior CPM leader and MP Sitaram Yechury today urged the Rajya Sabha (RS) Chairman Hamid Ansari to permit MPs to contribute from their MPLAD funds for the relief of flood victims in Jammu and Kashmir.

“I am writing to you with a request that MPs, who are very concerned and agonised with the plight of people in Jammu and Kashmir in the aftermath of unprecedented floods that have ravaged the state, feel that they may be permitted to send a part of their MPLAD fund to contribute to the relief and rehabilitation needs,” Yechury said in a letter to Ansari.

He has pointed out to Ansari that such a direction is given whenever major national disasters take place. He urged him to instruct the Rajya Sabha secretariat to permit the MPs to donate from the MPLAD funds to assist the relief operations.

He, however, has left it to the secretariat to decide the upper ceiling of such donations that may be permitted.

Meanwhile, an appeal made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to contribute towards Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund, to help the people of Jammu and Kashmir appears to have effect on the corporate sector. As per the government version, the Mahindra & Mahindra Group and Samsung Electronics have donated Rs 5 crore.

Srinagar, September 13
At this time of calamity, the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) is the only functioning hospital in marooned Srinagar city.

Not deterred by dearth of staff, which is currently only 25 per cent of what it used to be before floods, the hospital is working round the clock to meet the needs of desperate patients.

In the flood-ravaged Valley, the healthcare system is in doldrums. All major hospitals of the Valley, including Lal Ded, the only maternity hospital, Shri Maharaja Hari Singh, GB Pant children hospital and Bone and Joint Hospital are inundated and have little to offer to the ailing patients.

All the hospitals are shut since Sunday.

Director, SKIMS, Showkat Zargar said doctors who were not on the rolls of their hospital too had come to help in these trying circumstances.

“In the last six days, we have treated 2,194 patients. All major and minor emergencies have been handled in-house,” said Zargar who is camping inside the control room of the hospital since the floods hit the Valley.

Although SKIMS does not have a gynaecology section, since there was no other alternative for the patients, the hospital started the section a few days ago comprising 36 beds.

“The patients with labour pain were the major emergency in the hospital which we attended. We operated upon 250 such patients. Besides we have been treating people for injuries mostly received during the floods,” said Zargar.

“We have sufficient medicines currently. I have sent a message to the state government to get more medicines,” said the SKIMS Director.

SKIMS has handled even the complex cases like that of cancer in these days. A woman was brought in a state government chopper from Pulwama and was operated on Wednesday.

Tariq Ahmad, an attendant of a patient, said, “We are all praise for our doctors and paramedics here. They are working like prophets in this hour of crisis.”

Srinagar, September 13
At the single-storeyed Maisuma community centre in the heart of the marooned Srinagar city on the banks of the Jhelum, a group of women are narrating tales of horrific experiences and their encounters with death. There is despondency in the air and all faces look gloomy.

Suddenly an elderly man comes in and asks two women to come towards a corner. He whispers something and suddenly the women begin wailing.

Ghulam Qadir Khan, a technician by profession, who was missing for the past seven days, has died and his body has been retrieved, the elderly man says.

On hearing the news, Ghulam Qadir’s wife and four unmarried daughters are inconsolable. And, then there is wailing all around.

People said Ghulam Qadir was the only bread winner of his family.

Meanwhile, many families are concerned about their relatives who have not been traced so far.

Many people in Srinagar are missing since the floodwaters entered the historic city on Sunday.

Rescuers have retrieved bodies of over half a dozen people, including of a photojournalist. The worries of the affected families have been aggravated as the government machinery seems invisible.

The families of missing persons have little hope as there are few police stations left to register the missing reports. Nor are there any government offices that can provide credible information to people.

“Since Sunday when my child left the house he is missing. There is still no communication and I am worried. Where should I go? To whom should I complain?” asked a resident of Rajbagh.

Stories of missing are abound in the Valley. As water recedes more missing bodies are expected to be retrieved.

Srinagar, September 13
The rescue operations launched by various security agencies have been going on. At least 1.42 lakh residents have been evacuated from marooned localities of Jammu and Kashmir and shifted to safer places during the past one week.

A defence spokesman here said over 1,42,000 persons had been rescued so far by the armed forces and the National Disaster Response Force from various parts of the flood-ravaged state.

The spokesman said 86 transport aircraft and helicopters of the Indian Air Force and the Army Aviation Corps involved in rescue and relief operations. The Army has deployed around 30,000 troops for rescue and relief operations in the state. Armed forces personnel are distributing water bottles and food packets on a large scale. So far, more than 4,00,000 litres of water, 1,31,500 food packets and over 800 tonnes of cooked food have already been airdropped and distributed in the flood-affected areas.

So far, 1,771 sorties have been undertaken by the helicopters and aircraft of the armed forces and 2,371 tonnes of relief material have been dropped by the Indian Air Force.

A total of 224 boats of the Army and 148 NDRF’s inflatable boats are involved in the rescue operation.

The armed forces have also established 19 relief camps in Srinagar and Jammu. In Srinagar, camps were established at Badami Bagh Cantonment, Awantipora, Old Airfield, Sumbal, Chattargam and Jijamata Mandir. They are also being provided with food and other basic amenities.

To restore road connectivity, 5,700 personnel of the Border Roads Organisation have been deployed in Srinagar, Rajouri and Akhnoor. They have restored the road connectivity from Batote-Kishtwar, Kishtwar-Anantnag and Jammu- Poonch. On the Jammu-Srinagar highway, BRO personnel have cleared the road up to Ramsu.

Meanwhile, the flood-affected areas of Srinagar continue to remain submerged for the past more than eight days. The most affected areas are Shivpora, Indira Nagar, Rajbagh and Jawahar Nagar. The breaches on the river embankments await refilling, which are leading to continued flow of water into Rajbagh and Jawahar Nagar.

However, the flood waters from Shivpora and Indira Nagar have started receding down through the breached embankments. The water level in the Jhelum has receded to a large extent. Other areas of the city, including Bemina and Qamarwari, continue to remain under water.

Jammu, September 13
Kashmir — which was totally cut off from the rest of the world for the last 10 days — has now been connected via the Kishtwar-Sinthan road.

Fortyfive vehicles carrying petrol, diesel and LPG left for Kashmir today from Jammu via the route.

Of the three roads, Banihal, Mughal Road and Kishtwar-Sinthan, connecting the Jammu region with Kashmir, the Sinthan road has suffered less damage in the floods.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Jammu, Rajesh Kumar said: “After clearing debris from the Sinthan road and sending two vehicles for testing it, today we sent a convoy of 45 vehicles to Kashmir carrying petrol, diesel and LPG.”

“The convoy reached Kishtwar this evening and it will reach there (Kashmir) by tomorrow. More relief will be sent via the Sinthan road from tomorrow,” the Inspector General of Police said.

The Superintendent of Police, Kishtwar, has been directed to look after the traffic arrangement on the Sinthan road, as people from Kashmir are also taking the route to reach Jammu.

The IGP said more than 10,000 policemen had been deployed for relief and rehabilitation of the flood-affected in the state.

“We have provided wireless telecommunication at Kokernag and Sinthan Top where police is coordinating with the people coming from Kashmir. We are also providing them food at Kishtwar and arranging transport for them to come to Jammu,” said the Jammu IGP.

“The main highway via Banihal is also likely to be opened for light motor vehicles from Jammu to Srinagar only,” he added.

Briefing about today’s developments, the IGP said another IAF aircraft C-130 had been put into service to rescue the victims today.

He said about 900 people were airlifted today.

Jammu, September 13
Prominent ladies of Jammu led by Nidhi Sharma, daughter of former finance minister, late Girdhari Lal Dogra, carried out two-day tour of Jammu which recently bore the brunt of unprecedented flood that left trail of death and destruction with immense overall loss of livestock along with the lifelong earnings.

She, along with a group of prominent ladies of Jammu, held extensive tour of areas close to downstream Tawi river which spelt death and destruction which one cannot imagine. People are left shelter less, foodless and waterless, many of who are getting ill due to aftermath of flood. Their crops are all damaged.

“Our group has decided to give all possible help to as many people by first providing them food and medicare,” she said.

“We are all pained to see such scenario in which the people effected by worst condition were left onto themselves to find means to exist.

She noted with concern that all power hungry political leaders (present and aspiring) have entered the cocoon not caring courage to reach out to the calamity struck poor,” she questioned.

“When political parties have failed these people who are in enormous distress, we (the group of some prominent ladies) have decided to launch a non-governmental organisation (NGO) to extend helping hand to these people,” announced Nidhi Sharma.

The main aim of this organisation would be to help people in pain, agony and distress in Jammu region who are being discriminated with in all the spheres of life.

Jammu, September 13
For Barkat Illahi, a Gujjar camped near Tawi bridge adjacent to the Jammu-Nagrota highway, the dilemma could not have been bigger.

His daughter’s eyes pleading him to move to a safer location and his love for cattle that he had raised like his own children.

The Tawi was in full fury and belied the experience of the Gujjar who denied moving to a safer location despite warning and requests by civilians and the NDRF team. The Gujjar, who had immense faith in the Almighty, it was the biggest sin to abandon these creatures (cattle) at this moment.

A rescue team from Tiger Division was immediately launched to rescue the Gujjar. The water level had risen suddenly. The team was battling heavy rains, strong winds and rising water to rescue the Gujjar. Time was running out as the Tawi could any moment devour Barkat Illahi.

Relying on their experience, expertise and training an improvised float made of tubes, carabineers and life jacket was immediately made and launched upstream so as to reach the Gujjar.

A daring member of the team unmindful of his own life swam across the swelling river to take the float to the needy. The Gujjar and his daughter were secured to the rope and a tube and life jacket were put around.

The members of the rescue team managed to get them out of the floodwaters. However, their efforts to save the animals did not succeed. Though remorseful of his loss, the Gujjar thanked the Almighty for the “Angles in Uniform”. — TNS

Jammu, September 13
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board today provided more assistance to the people displaced due to recent rain and landslides in the Pouni area of Reasi district.

Chief Executive Officer of the Board MK Bhandari said the officers of the Shrine Board provided 600 blankets and 600 food packets to the flood victims of the Pouni area of Reasi district.

Deputy Chief Executive Officers Pankaj Gupta and Anil Sharma along with ther officials of the Shrine Board distributed the relief material to the victims in the presence of Deputy Commissioner, Reasi.

Katra, September 13
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) has decided to keep traditional old cave of Mata Vaishno Devi open till the yatra is below 10,000 pilgrims per day.

“Around 10,000 yatris could have darshan easily from the traditional cave without any waiting,” said Dr MK Mhandari, Chief Executive Officer, SMVDSB. Presently between 9,000 to 11,000 pilgrims are visiting daily. The yatra is proceeding smoothly via all the three routes of Sanjichhat-Bhawan, Adhkwari-Bhawan and Sanjichhat-Bhairon Temple track.

Responding to the queries of pilgrims from various parts of the country in regard to the pilgrimage, Dr Bhandari said the yatra was progressing smoothly via all the three routes. He said the Jammu-Katra road was open to traffic. Similarly, the train services were also operational up to Katra as usual. 

Srinagar, September 13
The Chief Secretary of the state has conveyed to all government employees to report to their duties to mitigate the problems of the people in this time of crisis. He as said action action under rules shall be initiated against the absentee employees.

It is also informed to the public that the connection of those BSNL subscribers using post-paid numbers shall not be disconnected for the next 15 days while the pre-paid users can avail a free talktime of 60 minutes for the next five days. 

Srinagar, September 13
“If I die in combat zone, box me up and send me home. Pin my medals upon my chest and tell my mom I did my best”.

Against the backdrop of these inspirational quotes, Army personnel, including GOC of 15 Corps Lt Gen Subrata Saha and officers of the JAKLI, bid adieu to two fallen heroes of the Army.

Naik Khem Chandra of 20 Kumaon Regiment and Rifleman Meer Owais Hussain of 15 JAKLI sacrificed their lives in Pulwama while on a rescue mission in the Jhelum on September 5.

While the wreath-laying ceremony was on at the Chinar Corps War Memorial here, Army helicopters for rescue work were taking off from a helipad nearby.

“Nature’s fury came like a bolt from the blue. On the midnight of September 5 a motorboat was launched to rescue women, children and elderly people in Kakapore and Sambur. While on their rescue mission with nine other troopers on the intervening night of September 5 and 6, the boat capsized in strong currents of the flashfloods,” said an Army spokesperson.

Though all other troopers were rescued next morning around 10.30 in a protracted operation, Naik Khem Chandra and Rifleman Meer Owais were swept away. Their bodies were recovered on September 12, he added.

Khem Chandra belonged to Nainital in Uttarakhand and Meer Owais belonged to Tral in Pulwama district of J&K.