The prudent use of social media by voluntary organisations, charity groups, and youth wings has gone a long way in the speedy gathering of food and other essential items for the roughly 300 relief camps in Kozhikode district.
Instantaneous responses to the District Collector’s Facebook post even helped the district set apart five additional containers of essential items, which were later sent to the disaster-hit Thrissur district.
District Collector U.V. Jose said the warm response from the people to his social media appeal was beyond words, and that it truly echoed the care and concern of people for their fellow beings even in other parts of the State. “There were around 200 volunteers on the premises of the DTPC office just to sort and package the materials on Saturday. We will continue the effort,” he said. The district administration is also planning to supply special kits containing all essential items to each of the families in relief camps. At present, there are over 44,000 persons in various camps in the district. Efforts will be made to support the families in distress for at least a month. This will be in addition to the ongoing supply of food items and other essential materials to camps.
Revenue Department officials said the exclusive Facebook and Whatsapp groups of social workers, government officials, and journalists played a crucial role in passing on personally verified social media messages to the authorities. Apart from the supply of materials at camps, they are active in coordinating with similar groups in other disaster-hit locations to provide reliable information on traffic arrangements, safe accommodation, and medical aid.
Sanisha Thomas, an active member of such a social media group in Kozhikode, said the biggest attraction of their service was the elimination of all possible fake messages.
“What we circulate through Facebook and Whatsapp are all personally verified from reliable sources, and it gives us a very good result in helping the targeted segments in time,” she added.
Ms. Thomas also described the support of some journalists on the field as praiseworthy, as they could pass on authentic information to various specially created groups for exchange of correct information. “Even those reliable messages prompted various other organisations to arrange a number of regional camps,” she added.
E. Rafeeq, another city-based volunteer, said he could even bring in a group of trained swimmers in Kozhikode city with the help of social media. “All their contact numbers are now with us to act in times of emergency,” he added.
Policemen attached to the Cyber Cell said fake messages this time were fewer than those during the Nipah outbreak. They also pointed out that the vigil exercised by some voluntary groups actually showed what social media could do when it came to saving lives even from remote locations.
