Relief
Activities
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On 11th
November 1996, some 600 kilometres into the Indian Ocean, a cyclone
took birth that eventually bulldozed across a 300 kilometres wide
track of annihilation at speeds of up to 260 kmph. East and West
Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh, a southern state of India,
were the worst hit.
The Damage
- 1,000 dead and 925 missing
- 5,80,000 homes destroyed
- 4,00,000 hectares of rice fields
washed away
- 22,000,000 coconut trees uprooted
- Banana and rice crops destroyed
completely
- Rs.20.26 billion damage estimated.
The
Relief Operation
As news of the devastation spread, the volunteers of the Sanstha
in Vijaywada began formulating relief work. Within hours, groups
of volunteers set out to survey the damage. Within four days,
a large experienced BAPS volunteer force had been formed from
Vijaywada, Secundrabad, Hyderbad and Mumbai. As Government aid
agencies were distributing rice, the local staple diet, the Sanstha
decided to distribute other basic food as well as clothes, old
and new.
Over 10,000 families
were provided aid in the following 20 villages:
Kondokuduru
Vemavaram
Aainvalli
Aainvalli Lanka
Vemavrapadu
Potailanka
Machavaram
Nanvalli
Janpalli
Gandhinagar
Ravuluchcheruvu
Ambajipet
Mundavaram
Kamanagaruvu
Nandampudi
Thondavaram
Gogulanka
Nagabattuluvaripalam
K. Agraharam
Virvallipalam
| Food
Distribution: |
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Rice: 10,000
kg.
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Flour: 1,000
kg.
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Jaggery:
200 kg.
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Dal: 8,000 kg.
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Ravo: 1,000
kg.
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Sugar: 150
kg.
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Biscuits:
5,000 packets
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Vegetables
500 kg.
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Amali: 300 kg.
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| Clothes
Distribution: |
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New Sarees:
10,000
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New Baniyan:
5,000
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New Lungis:
5,000
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New Shirts:
200
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2 trucks of used clothes
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As well as food and
clothes, the Sanstha also sent a team of qualified doctors to
help the sick or injured. Medicines were also distributed to medical
units working in the area.
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