KERALA, INDIA – India is experiencing monumental meteorological and geophysical problems that constantly threaten the potential of the country’s efforts to raise itself to a position of global leadership.
As governmental agencies, private companies, and NGOs work consistently to improve education, healthcare, and alleviating poverty and disease, circumstances beyond the control of mankind take one swipe after another at the country’s progress and the lives of its people.
Earlier this month, we reported on the water crisis in India and South Asia in “Too Much? Too Little? Too Late? South Asia’s Growing Water Crisis.” While major capital cities in South Asia – Dhaka, Delhi, Islamabad, Kabul, and Katmandu – are showing groundwater stress with the water table receding at an alarming rate. The supply of water in Northern India is diminishing while the demand is growing.
Meanwhile, the southern state of Kerala on India’s west coast has been inundated by monsoon-generated floodwaters that have destroyed 40,000 crore[1] hectares of crops, destroyed countless homes, commercial buildings, and displaced tens of thousands of people.
As of 10:00 PM India Standard Time on 20 August, over 1.2 million people are sheltered in emergency relief camps. The latest death toll from Kerala authorities stands at 373 and is expected to rise even higher as the floodwaters recede.
Hundreds of agencies are on the move to provide relief and to help in rescue efforts. Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported pastors and missionaries on the ground are providing food and clean water to numerous camps within their reach.
The state of Telangana has sent 500 tons of rice to the area.
The health of the survivors is rapidly becoming a major concern. There is a potential perfect storm of contaminated water illnesses, vector-borne diseases, fevers, and diarrhea brewing. In addition to getting controls into place to minimize the spread of communicable diseases in the population-swollen camps, medical staffs are attempting to make treatments available to the many chronically ill patients who need dialysis, chemotherapy treatments, and medications.
Pray for the survivors of these massive floods. Their long journey of reconstructing their lives, their homes, their businesses, and their villages has just begun.
Pray also for the aid workers – for renewed strength and energy as they offer their helping hands.
Sources:
- Quartz India, Help for Kerala flood victims is coming in from around the world
- Times of India, Kerala floods live updates: Over 10 lakh in relief camps; Centre declares disaster ‘calamity of severe nature’
- The Telegraph, Kerala flood creates waves in Assam
- Urdu Point, Bodies Found As Floods Recede In India’s Kerala
- NDTV, “Calamity Of Severe Nature”: Centre Upgrades Kerala Flood Tragedy Status
- The Peninsula, Thousands of relief camps sheltering 1.2 million people in flood-hit Kerala; massive cleanup begins
- New Indian Express, Kerala floods: Focus turns to diseases; authorities on the alert
- Money Control, Kerala floods LIVE: Devastation to cost the state Rs 20,000 cr, 40,000 crore hectares of crops destroyed, says CM
Image Source:
- By Akbarali [CC BY-SA 3.0], from Wikimedia Commons
