*Avalanche alert announced in Bhaderwah; schools closed
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, May 1: Refreshing the horrifying scenes of October 2005 major earthquake in the minds of people across the State, moderate intensity tremors and the aftershocks today rattled the erstwhile Doda district this afternoon leading to death of one person and injuries to nearly 80 people including students besides causing moderate to severe damage to the Government as well as public properties and blocking majority of the roads in Bhaderwah area by triggering landslides. As aftershocks were felt till late tonight, the administration announced closure of the Government as well as private schools in Doda, Ramban, Kishtwar and Kathua districts as a precautionary measure till further orders and sounded land-slide alert for the people living in the Bhadewah-Chamba border belt. The tremors were also felt in other parts of the State but there was no loss of life and property.
A spokesman of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) told EXCELSIOR that the tremors of moderate intensity having epicenter on Jammu and Kashmir-Himachal Pradesh border, 17 kilometer Northeast of Bhaderwah, were felt at 12.27 pm in the several parts of the State. The depth of the earthquake was measured at 10 kilometer beneath the earth surface.
Though its impact in other parts of the State was not much, the moderate intensity earthquake caused massive damage in entire Doda district particularly Bhaderwah area for being very close to the epicenter besides several parts of Kishtwar and Ramban districts. Today’s moderate intensity earthquake was second during the past 24 hours in Bhaderwah as yesterday at around 3.12 pm tremors measuring 4.3 on Richter Scale were also felt in the area.
Keeping in view the intensity of damages, Chief Secretary, Iqbal Khandey has directed the District Development Commissioners of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban to take every possible measure to provide respite to the affected people. He has even asked the police administration in these districts to extend full cooperation to the civil administration in this regard.
Reports said that people were busy in their routine activities when everything started shaking in major parts of the State at 12.27 pm. While in other parts of Jammu and Kashmir the tremors lasted within seconds without any loss of life or property, the earthquake and four subsequent aftershocks in erstwhile Doda district caused massive destruction and forced the people to rush out of their houses to save their lives.
“I was busy in attending my official files when suddenly strong tremors were felt and we had to rush out of the building, which despite being newly built developed cracks due to the earthquake. Even cracks developed in the SSP’s office complex and several barracks in the District Police Lines”, Deputy Commissioner, Doda, Mubarak Singh said when contacted, adding “within minutes the police and civil administration put entire official machinery into action to get information about the damages caused by the earthquake and take measures to prevent loss of lives”.
He said that Bhaderwah and Gandoh areas, which were near to the epicenter of the earthquake faced the maximum brunt and there was hardly any house or building-be it private or Government which did not suffer moderate to maximum damage. “As far as private houses and Government buildings are concerned, the figure will run in several thousand across the Doda district while as loss of livestock will run in several hundred”, said the Deputy Commissioner, who along with SSP Doda Arif Rishu visited Thathri, Gandoh and Bhaderwah areas soon after the first tremor shook the district to personally take the stock of the situation.
Though there was no aftershock in other parts of the State, the tremors of minor intensity were experienced in Doda district particularly Bhaderwah and Gandoh area till late tonight forcing the people in these areas to remain out of their houses. There was hardly any house, commercial establishment or Government offices across the Doda district which could withstand the tremor and cracks were developed in all including those which came up in the recent past.
According to the details available with the district administration, a total of 66 persons including 24 students sustained injuries in the damages caused by the tremors across the district. Even 25 persons including 13 students got frightened and fainted while witnessing everything around them trembling and all were rushed to hospital. Three critically injured students were referred to District Hospital Doda from Gandoh area and their condition was stated to be out of danger when reports last came in.
Among these 66 persons, 27 including 8 students sustained injuries in Bhaderwah area, 27 including three students at Gandoh and six persons at Doda and four persons at Thathri.
In Kishtwar district, a 60 year old shepherd namely Gousian got killed when a huge boulder hit him in Kuntawara area while grazing cattle while as eight students sustained injuries due to damage to the school building in Patimhal area. In order to save the life of a girl child, who got trapped inside debris of collapsed building at Kishtwar, the civil administration requisitioned the service of Indian Air Force.
The condition of six year old Muskan, who had sustained severe head injury, was deteriorating continuously in the District Hospital Kishtwar and to save her life the IAF services were sought for airlifting her to Jammu for specialized treatment in the Government Medical College and Hospital.
As usual the IAF responded promptly and pressed its Cheetah helicopter into service from Udhampur air base. The helicopter flown by Flt Lt Daish and Flt Lt Vinitav Kumar evacuated Muskan and flew her with attendant Ganesh to Jammu safely.
In Ramban district six students sustained injuries when a portion of Middle School in Gool area collapsed due to the tremors while as five students of Government Higher Secondary School Rajgarh fainted during the earthquake. Two students of a private school in Ramban also sustained minor injuries while rushing out of the class room during the tremors.
In several parts of the Kishtwar district also, large number of houses, commercial establishments and Government buildings suffered damages, report said, adding the tremors triggered landslides and shooting of stones at numerous locations across the Doda district leading to blockade of the roads. Even the Doda-Kishtwar National Highway 1B remained blocked for quite some time due to landslides at Thathri but the same was restored for vehicular movement by the GREF, which is responsible for its maintenance. However, road network could not be restored in some remote areas of Gandoh and Bhaderwah till this evening.
Initially, the administration in Doda and Kishtwar districts faced many difficulties in getting reports of damages because of snapping of the communication network as Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) suffered damage at some locations due to landslides. However, within few hours the communication link was restored and reports of damages caused by the earthquake started pouring in.
In Doda district, which bore the maximum brunt of the natural calamity, the District Development Commissioner has constituted eight teams headed by senior officers to assess the damages caused by the earthquake as early as possible so that the a detailed note could be forwarded to the Government for providing necessary assistance to the affected people. “I have issued directions for the collection of Panchayat wise information and hopefully within next few days entire detail would be worked out”, DDC Mubarak Singh said.
Meanwhile, the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, Pardeep Gupta, who is supervising the relief and rescue operation, has dispatched 20 tents and 100 blankets to be provided to the people rendered homeless in the affected areas.
He has directed the DDCs of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban to accommodate the persons, if any rendered houseless, in the community halls and other suitable Government buildings. All the districts have been asked by the Divisional Commissioner to furnish detailed reports by May 10 for grant of financial assistance under State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF).
Meanwhile, keeping in view the cracks developed in almost all the Government schools across Doda and Kishtwar district and fear of aftershocks, the administration in Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban and Kathua districts has ordered closure of schools till further orders. In erstwhile Doda district, the order is for all areas while as in Kathua district the order is applicable to the educational institutions of Bani, Lohai-Malhar, Billawar, Mahanpur, Basohli and Bhaddu Education Zones that too only for tomorrow—May 2, 2013.
Reports said that an avalanche alert has been issued for people living in Bhaderwah-Chamba belt where large number of people have been living in the foothills of Ashapati glacier and Chater-Gala hills.
Meanwhile, in view of the minor damage to the rented boys hostel building of Jammu University at Bhaderwah and the panic amongst students due to the earthquake in the Doda region, the Vice-Chancellor has rushed team headed by Prof N K Tripathi, Dean Students Welfare and comprising of Prof J S Tara, Director, Poonch Campus, to Bhaderwah and Rajive Gupta, AEE to take stock of the situation and make alternate arrangement for the comfortable stay of students on Campus.
Vice-Chancellor also spoke to Prof M.A Malik, Rector Bhaderwah Campus and directed him to make all possible lodging and food arrangements in the pre fabricated huts for the students till the buildings are declared safe for lodging.
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