Hi! I am not sure if any of my followers saw, but I’ve been saying it is pretty bad for Kerala right now. (PS: I’m safe right now, and my family has moved to shelters or high-level areas).
Just in case, if you didn’t know, Kerala is a small state in the south-west part of India. We are mainly known for our cynicism, sarcasm, and our love of going to “The Gulf”. We are that part of India that had Muslims before the Mughals Invasion and Christians before the British Invasion and lived more-or-less in harmony with each other throughout. We love our socialism, our love of eating beef, and generally trying to resist the majoritarian principles of rest of the country.
And currently, Kerala is trembling under the fury of the monsoon.
There has been incessant rain for the past three weeks, and most parts of Kerala are flooded. Till yesterday , 12 out of 14 districts were on Red Alert. All 44 rivers on this small strip of land was overflowing. As the rains continued, most lakes, reservoirs, and dams got filled and 33 dams were opened. And the outflow of these dams combined with rainwater rushed through towns and cities alike.
There has been landslides, sudden top soil movement and road collapses throughout the state, but especially in hilly areas. Most bridges, roads (including National Highways) are either completely destroyed or flooded beyond use.
Ten thousands of homes have been inundated and families have moved away. People and entire cities & towns have been marooned.
This man is inside his home; neck-deep in water [he made this video and shared it through social media in an effort to get noticed and rescued]:
The Kochi International Airport is flooded and would be shut down for ten days. Railways are jammed and most roads are flooded. Most dams are open and cities have turned into lakes and rivers. The fact that there are water disputes with neighbouring states and state-level & national-level politics involved doesn’t help the common people of Kerala either.
This is not a water-tank over-flowing. It’s an entire dam that is overflowing (the Peringalkutthu dam, to be precise): .
The death toll is currently estimated to be about 300 and over 3 lakh individuals have been displaced. It is only because of high inter-connectivity and an educated population that the death toll has been under control.
And this is just the beginning:
Those who are rescued has to deal with extensive property damage.
Farmers have to deal with huge crop loss.
Most rescue shelters are running out of food and medicines.
Food shortage will continue even after the floods as most of our food comes from Tamil Nadu/Andhra Pradesh, and the roads and railways connecting the two states are flooded.
Roads, Bridges and Communication channels will have to be rebuilt.
Outbreaks of water-borne diseases as water will get contaminated
Outbreaks of mosquito-born diseases like Dengue fever as stagnant water persists.
Large sections of Kerala is flooded. Kochi has come to a halt.
Seriously, we are in big trouble. So, if you can donate, please do. Small acts of kindness goes a long way. If not, please signal boost.
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