CITY STANDS BY THE FLOOD VICTIMS

KANPUR, October 1: People of the city have come out in huge numbers to help the flood victims. The flood victims, who have suffered magnanimous losses due to the fury of the Ganga, have been pleasantly surprised by the love and care showered on them by their fellow city inhabitants. People have come forward and shown the victims that they fully stand by them in their hour of need.

During visits to Ganga Barrage flood relief camp on September 29 and 30, several people were seen working there. They did not belong to any NGO but had come there to do something for the flood victims on their own, something that might help in reducing the plight of the victims. Gaurav Mishra, who owns a petrol pump by the name of Kanpur Carriers at Sachendi, was seen distributing Khichdi to the people with the help of his team. Gaurav was very touched by the plight of the flood victims and said, “Look at these people. They have lost everything. I think we should all do everything possible to help these people.” He told that he had come to the camp a couple of times earlier too with his team. “The Khichdi we are distributing here has been prepared at our home only”, he said.

A team of two middle-aged friends, Alok Gupta and Vikas Verma, was seen distributing biscuit packets to the children. Both of them own wholesale grocery shops in the Nayaganj market and had come there to do something for the children in the camp. Alok Gupta said, “You really do not need to be a member of an NGO if you want to do something good for anybody.” They said that they had come to the camp for the first time but the experience was an eye opening one. Vikas Verma said, “I did not expect to see so many people in this camp and I have never seen such a calamity in our city before.” Both of them said that more people should come forward to help the flood victims. Several other people like Ram Naresh Dubey, Shiv Mohan Singh, Pappu, and Lal Ji Pandey were also seen distributing clothes, biscuits, and fruits to the residents of the camp.

Sector In Charge at Ganga Barrage flood relief camp, Nayab Tehsildar Gulab Chandra , told us that a total of 1035 families were staying at Ganga Barrage flood relief camp itself. The total population of the camp was 4734. He said, “The administration though has made adequate arrangements in the camp for the flood victims but it feels good to see so many people coming forward to help the flood victims.”

Several camp residents were asked about the impact that these efforts had made. Rasiti, an old lady said that she was surprised to see so many people coming to the camp everyday to distribute something or the other. Chhanga said that so much care makes you forget your loss. Ganga Prasad, Indrana, Maiku, Bunty, Bhagwan Din, and Sushma said that they were satisfied with the quality of things that were being distributed by the people and thanked the people for their love and care.

WRATHFUL MOTHER GANGA TAKES AWAY EVERYTHING

TERRIFIED PEOPLE CLING TO MOTHER’S SHORES TO CALM HER DOWN

KANPUR, September 28:  Around five hundred mud houses of the low-lying katri area have been washed away completely by the fury of the Ganga. People belonging to thirteen villages have taken shelter in the flood relief camp at Behrai village on bypass side of the Ganga barrage. After losing all their land and property, the villagers there are waiting for the furious Mother Ganga to calm down so that they could return to their homes for a new beginning.

                It has been one and a half months since water in the Ganga began rising due to heavy rains in the upper parts of the northern India. It crossed the danger mark 115.50 meters at the Ganga barrage at 6 a.m. on September 27 and presently is flowing 70 cm above the danger mark. Several low-lying surrounding areas like Chainpurwa, Rampur, Gangarampurwa, Devnipurwa, Pahadipurwa, and others have been inundated with huge loss of agricultural land and crops. People who have never seen the Ganga in such devastating form are terrified. Residents of thirteen villages, who lost everything due to the floods, have come to the flood relief camp at Behrai village situated on the bypass side of the Ganga barrage. Administration has done all arrangements to help the large number of people staying in the relief camps.

                We met several families in the relief camp and felt the extent to loss that the people have suffered. Bhagwandin and his daughter-in-law Sushma from Chainpurwa were one of the first few who came to the camp about one and a half months ago. They told us that they had lost their house and all belongings due to the flood. Malku, Amar Singh, and Ganga Prasad from the same village told us that Guava crop was completely destroyed as the trees were uprooted by the force of the river. Women like Rasiti and Indrana started crying when asked about their story. Each of them had similar stories of loss and grief to tell.

Sukkha of Devnipurwa came here about six days ago. He told that around 10-15 houses in his village were just scooped away by the force of the Ganga. He said that most of the people were farmers and labourers who had lost everything that they had. Changa of Rampur village said that he had constructed a house this year only which cost him 5 lakhs and yesterday his house succumbed to the fury of the Ganga and was swept away. Now, he had only the shelter of his temporary polythene tent. Ramswarup, Gulaba Devi, Sukhrani, and Gokul also told us that they had lost all their belongings and some cattle too because of the flood.

Most of the people that we talked to said that perhaps the Ganga was angry with them and so had taken away whatever she had given to them. But life goes on as Gokul, one of the villagers said, “Mother Ganga is angry and we have nowhere else to go. We hope that she calms down soon so that we could go back to start all over again.”                                                

  

HUMANE DOCTORS COME FORWARD AS STRIKE CONTINUES

KANPUR, September 27: The indefinite strike called by the doctors turned even worse today as the patients kept on being turned away by the nursing homes and doctors. Some responsible doctors though did continue to work and treat those patients who were refused treatment by their own fraternity.

Arti Tiwari, wife of Pramod Tiwari, a resident of B block, Panki, was brought in severe labour pains to Merrygold Maternity Home in E block, Panki. The nurse on duty refused coldly to admit the patient saying that there was no lady doctor on duty though the doctor was inside the maternity home at the time. The husband and the mother-in-law of the patient implored the staff to admit the patient but to no avail. As the condition of the patient worsened, the relatives took her to Brij Medical Centre and Raja Ram Hospital, both of which simply refused to admit her saying that no private nursing home would admit her and that they should take her to Hallett.

            Hallett is 11 Km from Panki and the patient could not be taken so far given her continuously deteriorating condition. With no hope on the horizon, her relatives took her to Mahaveer Hospital near Panki railway station. Thankfully, Dr. Omkar Singh, in charge of the hospital was compassionate enough to admit the patient considering her condition. Arti was admitted immediately and given the much needed care at the hospital. The tribulations of the family turned into blithesome joy when she gave birth to a healthy baby boy about one hour after her admission to the hospital. Dr. Omkar Singh said that his hospital supported the strike but such cases should not be turned away by any doctor or nursing home.

Another case was that of a 4-year-old girl named Komal who was brought here today from Rania. She was having high fever and tremors. Her parents and relatives went to various hospitals with the child on their shoulder but were given a cold shoulder by every hospital in the area. Fortunately for them, Dr. Kamlesh Kumar Chaudhary, the doctor on duty at Shanti Medical Centre situated in the B block area of Panki. She was admitted and given treatment even though the hospital is supporting the strike. Her parents thanked the doctor for his kindness. Dr. Chaudhary said that the child was having cerebral malaria and was improving since the treatment started. He also told that he had done 31 OPDs for malaria alone during the day itself. He said, “Homeopathy and allopathy are good but sympathy is the best”. Let us hope that other striking doctors also follow these examples and the helpless patients are not made to suffer.

SEASONAL RISE IN DIARRHOEA AND VIRAL INFECTIONS, CHILDREN MOST VUNERABLE

Kanpur, September 25: The post monsoon conditions are proving conducive for the spread of diarrhoea and viral infections resulting in long queues of patients in the hospitals and clinics. Children, unfortunately, are the worst affected by these problems. Paediatricians all over the city are busy handling the heavy influx of patients. The fact of the matter is that while it is very easy for children to catch such infections, the parents can protect their little ones from these infections by taking some very simple precautions.

According to one of the most senior paediatricians in the city, Dr. R. C. Gupta, most of the children brought to his clinic these days suffer from viral fever and diarrhoea. The number of Typhoid patients is also on a rise he said. He told that the rain, temperature, and relative humidity are the major and important climatic factors responsible for the spread of viral infections and diarrhoea. During this part of the year these diseases tend to raise their heads but simple precautions can prove to be very useful in protecting children against them. He explained that a viral infection is accompanied by certain symptoms. The most common symptoms in most of the viral infections are fever, cough, runny nose, and throat pain. Describing the precautions for Diarrhoea he said that children should be given only thoroughly boiled water. He gave great importance to sanitation. Children should properly wash their hands and faces with soap and water whenever they come back home from outside he said. He also said that children should eat food prepared at home only and should keep away from junk food and market food. Once affected by diarrhoea, the child should be given ORS intermittently and only light food like khichdi or dalia should be given which can be digested easily.

            Dr. D.K. Jetly, another leading paediatrician in the city also agreed with his senior colleague and said that these viral infections and diarrhoea posed a serious threat to the health of children in our city. Elucidating on symptoms of a viral infection he said that fever, cold, cough, runny nose, throat pain, body aches, and loss of appetite are the symptoms of a viral infection. He also said that people should not take a viral fever lightly as the symptoms of viral fever are similar to those of Swine flu. The treatment should be started immediately if the child demonstrates symptoms of a viral infection and the child should be tested for Swine flu if the treatment is unable to cure the infection within 4-5 days. Earlier the facility for testing Swine flu was only at SGPGI at Lucknow but now Paliwal pathology at Pandu Nagar also has this facility in Kanpur. A viral infection is a communicative disease and spreads by sneezing, coughing, and human saliva. The infected child should use a handkerchief to cover the nose and mouth while sneezing and coughing so that the infection does not spread to others. The fever rises rapidly in a viral infection. Parents should keep monitoring the temperature of the child and should wipe the body of the child with clean wet cloth continuously if the temperature is above 101 F. He cautioned against self medication and said that in case of a viral infection, parents should take the child immediately to a qualified doctor. He also said that an infected child should not be sent to the school to prevent the spread of the infection to other children. The infected child should be kept away from crowed places too he said.

 Regarding diarrhoea he emphasised the importance of sanitation and said that the people should inculcate the habit of washing hands frequently with soap in their children. In case of diarrhoea, the parents should give the child ORS (Oral Rehydration Solution) intermittently. An ORS packet should be used all at once for making the solution he said and not in small portions at a time. A made-up solution should be used within 24 hours as there is a risk of bacteriological contamination after it. Parents could also make ORS at their home by dissolving one teaspoon sugar and a pinch of salt in a glass of boiled and cooled water. The child should be given clean water to drink other than the ORS too. He also said that mother’s milk should not be stopped if the child depends on it. The child can also be given curd, lentils, khichdi, and dalia. Oily and spicy foods should not be given to the child having diarrhoea he said.

            A little cautiousness of the parents can protect children from getting infected by viral infections and diarrhoea. While self medication is strictly forbidden, the child should be taken immediately to a qualified doctor for proper treatment immediately.                                                                                                                              

FEAR FACTOR KEEPS PEOPLE AWAY FROM MARKETS

KANPUR September, 24: Erstwhile busy and bubbling streets and markets of the city bore a haunted look today as large number of people preferred to remain indoors. SC’s stay on the pronouncement of judgment in the 60-year-old Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid title suits yesterday seemingly has not been able to completely restore the sense of security in the common man. It felt like a Sunday as there were very few people on the roads. Most of the markets were open but the shops kept waiting for the customers who were just too cautious to turn up.

Deserted Parade Market

                In order to assess the magnitude of effect of yesterday’s deferment on the busy markets, we went around the city and asked the shop owners of both big and small shops to know their side of the story. We started from Vijay Nagar where we saw gaping shops with very few customers. The shop owners were mostly seen idling away their time. We met Kishore who owns Kishore Footwear in the busy Vijay Nagar Market. He told us that the business was badly affected as people had postponed shopping now due to the uncertain circumstances. The long queues of students waiting to enter the coaching classes were missing and the otherwise busy Aone Market looked quite off colour. Prashant Mishra of New Prashant Studio there told us that the Kakadev market thrived on students but most of the students had gone to their hometowns as a precaution and so the market was looking so drowsy.

                Ravatpur station, our next destination, was almost the same. The booking counter of the station was almost empty and so was the platform. We talked to Ram Narayan Gupta, owner of a small grocery shop near the station who also complained about the lack of customers. Then we went to Parade and on the way saw markets which were seriously in need of customers. At our next stop, Kesarwani Dosa and Fast Food Corner at Parade chauraha, we saw the proprietor complaining to a person about the lack of customers. When asked about the effect that the lack of customers had on his business, he said that the loss must have been around 90%.  He said that the people had not come to the market due to fear. He also said that perhaps the people did not know that the decision had been deferred.

                Moving forward, we came across Star Petrol Pump in front of Christ Church College and met Kishori Lal Yadav, an employee who was casually standing by the machines while all the other employees of the petrol pump sat at some distance gossiping. On talking to him, he said that very few vehicles came today for refueling and most of the time they had been sitting only. He also estimated the loss to be around 85%-90%. A fruit juice shop near the RBI had the owner, Mohd. Mussavir, sitting nearby. He along with his brother Sher Mohammad too complained about the absence of customers. Birhana road’s view, a further ahead, was no different either. The jewelry shops which are always full with customers, notwithstanding the cost of the precious metals, otherwise were feeling the effect too. Irfan Alam of Nice Shoes at Meston Road said that the loss was around 80% as the customers from other cities and towns were afraid to come to Kanpur for their marketing. Other shopkeepers like Raju Singh and Mohd. Iqbal concurred with him. Kishore Kukreja, a wholesale dealer and President of Sports Goods Association of Kanpur estimated his loss of business to be around 90%. He said that people from all over Uttar Pradesh came to his shop but now the outsiders were avoiding the city. The deferment would only deteriorate the situation further and the people have had enough of this he said. He found a supporter in Sajid Shoaib, President of Meston Road Vyapar Mandal who said that it is only the poor public whic h suffers. Meston Road is the most affected market because of its proximity to the sensitive areas he said. He also hoped that the markets would improve during the evening hours when Muslims returned from their Friday prayers.

                All the shop owners we talked to were of the opinion that the deferment had only created confusion in the minds of the people resulting in deterioration in business all over the city. Irrespective of their religion, all of them said that the people have had enough of this issue as it was not going to provide them with their bread and butter no matter who wins the case. They suspected that this condition will go on till September 28 and hoped that the sooner all this ends the better it would be for the people.

AYODHYA: SC DEFERS FREAKY FRIDAY

KANPUR September 23: In a sudden and unexpected turn of events, the Supreme Court today stayed the verdict in the Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid title suits and deferred the judgment by almost a week.  In a bid to give reconciliation a last chance, the Supreme Court will now hear the case on September 28 and all concerned were issued notice regarding this. The deferment has meanwhile seemingly evaporated the cloud of fear that was developing in the people and the administration regarding the ominous Friday when the verdict was scheduled to be given. The decision brought smiles on the worried faces and people heaved a sigh of relief at this.

                An inexplicable fear had been developing in the people of the city about what was going to happen on Friday, September 24, when the High Court was scheduled to declare the result on the 60-year-old Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit. The city of Kanpur, which has witnessed violence and bloodshed being caused due to this issue in the past too, was bracing itself for the ominous consequences of the verdict. The administration too had geared up to handle any untoward incident caused due to the verdict and a large number of security personnel and police had been deployed in the whole city to keep a strict vigil. Religious leaders, political leaders, and the administration were repeatedly making appeals for peace and cooperation between the two communities involved. Even after all this, somewhere deep inside, there was a sense of fear in the people and most of the offices and schools registered scanty attendance.

               

                As soon as the news about the deferment broke out, people from all walks of life felt relieved. Roads, markets, malls, and bus stands, which were looking deserted, gradually saw an increase in activity. People were seen discussing at the teashops and in the streets.  The whole atmosphere suddenly was relaxed and quite back to normal. We went out to take the opinions of the members of both the communities and of the people in general regarding the verdict.

We started by going to a mosque and Mohammad Hayat Razaa Kadri, the Pesh Imaam of the Masjid Kanjul Islaam at Ganganj expressed his happiness over the deferment and thanked the DM and ADM for their concern and help. He confessed that there was a feeling of fear in the Muslims regarding the consequences of the verdict and stressed upon the need of brotherhood amongst the two communities.

Next, we went to the Panki temple and talked to the priest there. Pt. Bal Krishna Mishra was there who started by saying that everything happens according to the wish of God and that God’s wish can never be wrong. He said that he himself was happy to hear about the deferment and was of the opinion that the judgment could have hampered the panchayat elections. He also said that though there was no fear of any kind of violence in Panki, the rest of the city actually was in the grip of a fear.

After taking the opinions of two prominent religious persons, we went around the city to know what the general people felt about the deferment. Amit Pal, a student, was not happy with the deferment and said that it is not good for the society to postpone such matters. He did concur that an atmosphere of fear about what was going to happen was there in the people of both the communities. Similar views were expressed by Mohd. Mussavir who runs a garment shop in Shivala and Irfan Alam who owns a shoe shop at Meston Road. At the same time, an elderly Chote Khan in Maswanpur area,  Raju Singh at Meston Road, and Mohd. Iqbal at Ram Narayan Market, said that they welcomed the deferment. They also said that they feared Hindu Muslim clashes no matter whom the verdict favoured.

 We then talked to two old gentlemen who were out for their evening walk in Armapore Estate. One of them, H.K. Tiwari, said that the public was not afraid of any decision and the hype was created by the government. He also felt that the deferment was good as all the possible efforts should be made for reconciliation. Roop Ram also agreed with his friend and stated that reconciliation would be much better as verdict in anybody’s favour was bound to create tension between the two communities. Though a difference of opinion was inevitable, most of the people we talked to felt relaxed and thought that leaders of both the communities should sit together to resolve this longstanding issue by negotiations and mutual understanding so that ultimately humanity wins this case.

I.C.D.S. KANPUR: WORKING TOWARDS BETTER CHILDCARE

KANPUR, September 23:  Integrated Child Development Services (I.C.D.S.) Kanpur, a flourishing branch of I.C.D.S. Uttar Pradesh, was established in the year 1985. Following the footsteps of its parent organization, it too has tried to reach out to every mother and child. Dinesh Singh, District Programme Officer (D.P.O.) of I.C.D.S. in Kanpur, told that there are as many as twelve I.C.D.S. projects in Kanpur and every project is headed by a Child Development Project Officer (C.D.P.O.). He told that there are a total of 1922 Anganbadi Kendras which cater to the developmental and nutritional needs of children of less than six years of age. He said that a team of 76 Supervisors works under twelve experienced C.D.P.O.s for smooth running of the system. He also told us that a total of 2,40,286 children benefited from the programmes run under these projects during the month of July in Kanpur alone.

Veena Singh, C.D.P.O. of City Second project of I.C.D.S. in Kanpur, told that I.C.D.S. is running various programmes for the welfare of women and children in Kanpur. An Anganbadi Kendra, she said, though can be started anywhere in the city but priority is given to areas in which majority of the population is economically weaker. She said that the work of an Anganbadi Kendra included providing prenatal care and nutrition to expectant mothers and providing proper immunization, proper nutrition, and preschool education to children of ages not exceeding six years. Stress is given to complete physical and psychological growth of a child she said. She also told that grades were given to the kendras ranging from A, B, and C (Best, medium, and weak respectively) for maintaining the quality control over the services provided by the kendras. 

On reaching an Anganbadi Kendra at Ranighat in Nawab Ganj area, we met an elderly but energetic Anganbadi Worker, Chaya, who told us that expectant women from economically weaker sections were registered at the centre and were given double ration of 150g/day and Take Home Ration (THR) of energy rich amylase food for six days was provided to them in advance. She told that their immunization and complete checkups were done by the health department and that they were also provided with folic acid tablets for controlling iron deficiency in them.

Another worker at an Anganbadi Kendra in Purana Kanpur area of Nawab Ganj told us that proper immunization was given to all children and children belonging to the age group of 7 months to 3 years were given weaning food (high calorie Panjiri) for fulfilling their developmental requirements. Children aged 6-8 years were given preschool education along with rich in energy amylase food of 50g/child once in the morning when they came to the kendra.

At a centre at Machua Nagar area of Nawab Ganj, we saw children taking midday meal of Khichdi which was diligently cooked at the Anganbadi Kendra itself. The worker there, Arti, told us that the children were provided with Khichdi and Dalia on alternate days costing Rs. 2 per child. She said that the children were also given Jaggery and Bengal gram to eat on Wednesdays and Fridays. She confidently said that the food prepared as midday meal for the children was as safe and healthy as the one cooked at their homes.

I.C.D.S. in India has come a long way since its establishment on October 2, 1975. From a very humble beginning of mere 33 blocks in Andhra Pradesh, it has grown into being the world’s largest integrated early childhood programme according to UNICEF. Not surprisingly, it is the only major holistic programme that addresses the health and nutrition needs of children under the age of six in India. Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) which was pathetically low at 85.5% in urban areas and 87% in the rural areas has now come down to 67% and 80% respectively due to the relentless efforts of  I.C.D.S.            

DEVOTEES STRANDED AT PANKI AS FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILS NEAR KANCHAUSI

KANPUR September 21: Thousands of devotees who came to Panki on the auspicious occasion of Budhwa Mangal were left stranded at the station as a freight train derailed near Kanchausi station in Auraiya district.

Yesterday Budhwa Mangal was celebrated in the city with religious festivity. Thousands of devotees flocked the famous temple at Panki for getting a glimpse and blessings of lord Hanuman, the presiding deity of the temple, on this auspicious day. Many of these devotees had come from as far as Etawah.

The Railways had done extensive preparations for this particular occasion keeping in view the large number of people who come here from far off places. Apart from the usual passenger trains, six trains including five express trains namely Jodhpur Hawra Express, Janta Express, Sangam Express, Unchahaar Express, and Allahabad Mathura Express were given stoppage at the Panki station from September 20-22 for better handling of the heavy traffic of passengers due to Budhwa Mangal.

According to the Chief Regional Supervisor at Panki station Mr. H. R. Wagle a freight train No. 7796 coming from Ghaziabad derailed near the western outer of Kanchausi station at around 8:30 a.m. yesterday when a pressure tank beneath a wagon burst off. Five wagons of the train were derailed in this incident severely affecting the traffic on both up and down tracks as OHE tripped.

An overworked Mr. K. K. Rai, the Station Master of Panki station told that it took more than six hours to restore the OHE and the traffic. All the passenger trains had to be cancelled and the express trains were running late as a result of this. He also said that the load on the station more than doubled during Budhwa Mangal.

The devotees had to face a lot of problems due to the cancellation of the passenger trains in particular and the platform at Panki station was rather overflowing with devotees. Brij Bhushan from Kanchausi, one of the devotees, reflected that the cancellation of passenger trains affected the common people like him more as they stop at even the small stations whereas express trains do not. An elderly man, Shyam Singh, from Rura said that he had been waiting at the station for a train since 4 p.m. Ashok from Jhinjhak said that he wondered how he would be able to get inside a train, even if one did come, as there was such heavy rush of the passengers at the station.