Post-flood reconstruction in Ernakulam district, which had sustained considerable damage in August last, has hinged on three major pillars — rebuilding of personal assets, public infrastructure and restoration of livelihoods.
“While we have been able to cover some distance in restoring the first two, rebuilding livelihoods takes time and poses a serious challenge, as each field is unique.
“This is what we should be focusing on,” says K. Mohammed Y. Safirulla, District Collector.
But it has achieved a certain degree of success in restoring the looms of traditional weavers of Chendamangalam and North Paravur. With the community and patrons actively chipping in, a good 238 of the 255 handloom units are back in operation now. Nothing other than the ubiquitous ‘Chekutty’ doll upcycled by a team of social entrepreneurs from the torn and soiled garments of Chendamangalam symbolises the resurgence of the sector. Big corporations, too, came forward with CSR funds to the tune of ₹1.1 crore.
The district administration has disbursed the first instalment of ₹95,100 each to 1,341 beneficiaries to rebuild their houses.
Applications for damages
Data collated after a survey by the administration shows that 2,314 homes had been fully damaged, while 86,341 (the biggest number for a district in the State) were assessed to have suffered partial damage. “There were 30,239 applications for inclusion of their houses in the partially damaged category. We have set up a 60-member team to ascertain the veracity of these claims and the process is expected to be completed by this month-end,” says Mr. Safirulla. Meanwhile, compensation for partially-damaged homes, assessed in four slabs depending on the degree of damage, has been paid in some 4,000 cases.
The administration has also chosen to get 337 homes built for those rendered homeless by the floods under the Care Home Project. A hunt is on for sponsors, some are already on board, to build homes for 178 homeless people.
Building of damaged roads has been slow in the district, with only 30% work completed so far. A total of ₹23.92 crore has been allotted to the Muvattupuzha Roads Division to mend 105 roads. A total of 17 have been completed. However, only 70 of the 216 roads under the Ernakulam Roads Division for which ₹20.5 crore has been alloted, have been repaired.
Ernakulam has a record of sorts among all flood-hit districts in sanctioning loans under the Resurgent Kerala Loan Scheme (RKLS) to women under the Kudumbashree Mission for replacing damaged household goods. A total of ₹254.85 crore has been sanctioned against 4,008 applications so far.
