The Central team, which concluded its three-day visit of Cyclone Gaja-affected districts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on Monday, was “able to get a feel” of the extent of the devastation caused by the natural disaster, said Daniel E. Richard, the official who led the team.
“It is not humanly possible to visit all the affected areas. We have seen the devastation in the worst-affected areas and heard the people,” the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs told The Hindu after inspecting the damage at Vizhunthamavadi, one of the worst hit fishing hamlets in Nagapattinam district.
Counters criticism
He made the observation when asked to comment on the criticism from some quarters that the team had visited only a limited number of places, and may not have got the full picture of the damage.
Commissioner of Revenue Administration K. Satyagopal, who had accompanied the team, also disagreed with this contention, saying the officials had been presented with a bird’s-eye view of the damage during their visit to the affected areas, besides photographic and videographic evidence.
Addressing mediapersons in Velankanni, Mr. Richard said the team had witnessed extensive damage in Pudukottai, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts.
Houses — both pucca and kutcha — and even concrete buildings like the TNCSC godowns had been damaged.
“We have seen coconut, banana and mango trees flattened. We have also inspected the damage in fishing hamlets, where the sea had brought slush into the villages,” he said, and expressed hope that the people would benefit from the team’s report.
Appreciates efforts
He observed that officials at all levels were working overnight to restore power and drinking water supply. “They may not have been able to wipe every tear, because there is so much pain. But they have been doing what they can. With time, they’ll be able to reach all the affected people,” he said.
On the last day of their visit, the team was shown around some of the worst-affected parts of Nagapattinam district. They were shown the restoration work at a power sub-station in Vettaikaranirruppu and a couple of relief centres. They inspected an extensively damaged food grain warehouse of the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation at Kovilpathu.
The team also got an idea of the damage suffered by fisherfolk at Pushpavanam and Vizhunthamavadi before leaving for Karaikal.
