Ajay Raina
JAMMU, Sept 14: Relief operations in flood-flood hit areas of Jammu region were resumed after remaining suspended for couple of hours due to rain and cloudy weather this morning..
However, battered and uprooted by floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains, thousands of mountain dwellers in the Jammu region said that IAF rescue helicopters are the “only hope” of their survival.
Mild rainfall occurred in many parts of the Jammu and Kashmir this morning, triggering fears about more trouble in the areas which are already reeling under the devastation caused by incessant rains last week in Jammu and Srinagar.
However, the rainfall which started at around 8.30 am stopped within an hour in Srinagar, whereas in Jammu, the rainfall took around two hours to stop.
In view of the rainfall and dense clouds, IAF halted its flights to ferry relief supplies even though emergency operations of transporting medicines and people were maintained. Normal relief operations by IAF choppers resumed at around 11 am from both the technical airports of Jammu and Srinagar.
Air Officer Commanding (AOC), Air Commodore Prashant Ek Nath Patange of Jammu IAF Station told Excelsior that relief operations were delayed in the State due to bad weather conditions and rains, but transport aircraft were actively ferrying people from Srinagar to Jammu.
“In Jammu, we had some rains and wind, but in Srinagar there was little bad weather which hampered our operations”, he said.
Eighty-six transport aircraft and helicopters of Indian Air Force and Army Aviation Corps are involved in rescue and relief operations.
He said that today around 12 sorties are undertaken to supply over 64 tons of load, adding that Approximately 500 people were airlifted from Srinagar to Jammu.
During 10 day long rescue and relief operation, IAF Station Jammu carried out 269 sorties of aircraft and helicopters and airlifted 8,623 people, besides carrying 427 tonnes of relief material during the period, Air Commodore Patange said.
“The entire fleet of choppers, Airmen and officers have been engaged in rescue and relief operation”, he added.
“We have carried out rescue and relief operations in 45 areas in Jammu division braving weathers conditions, rains and difficult terrains,” he said, adding that some of the most difficult areas included Chasana, Nawapanchi, Poonch, Rajouri and other belts.
“First, we ferried food and medicines to the affected areas and then blankets and tents for sheltering the people,” he said. “The moral of our personnel is very high though we are on the 10th day of the operation,” he said.
Choppers of the Jammu IAF station, popularly known as condors, have been carrying out rescue and relief operations in 41 mountainous and remote belts of Poonch, Rajouri, Reasi, Udhampur, Ramban, Kishtwar, Doda, Jammu and Samba districts in Jammu region for the past 10 days.
When asked to compare the operations with that undertaken in Uttarakhand last year in the wake of floods there, Patange said the two operations cannot be compared because of difference in topography.
The ongoing ‘Operation Megh Rahat’ in J&K is the biggest operation than that of Uttrakhand, he said, adding that the flying machines encounter hurdles like telecom towers, electricity poles etc here which was not the case in mountainous region of Uttarkashi.
Meanwhile, thousands of mountain dwellers in the Jammu region said that IAF rescue helicopters and Army were the “only hope” of their survival. They acted as saviors (messiah). They showered praises on Indian Air Force (IAF) for air-dropping food items and other relief material.
“Our house is gone, household goods have perished and all our animals killed. We did not have anything to eat”, said Chamail Singh of Sungari hamlet of Rajouri district.
He said that IAF choppers have become the only lifeline for us. They brought food and other relief material for us, he added.
“We were being supplied food by a small Army group for the past few days, before the IAF chopper delivered rations and ready-to-eat food packets to them”, he added.
“Twice they (IAF choppers) brought relief material after landslides badly destroyed our houses”, Anwar Din of flood-hit Chasana belt of Reasi district said.
Kartar Singh of Udhampur termed the IAF choppers and Army personnel as the “messiah” to the people living in his Saddal village, which has been wiped out in flood and landslides on September 7, when 41 people were killed.
“IAF supplied relief material to over 100 people, most of them survivals of Saddal landslide”, he said, adding that they also carried some to hospital.
Most of the people residing in the mountainous belt of Jammu province were angry with the State Government for its failure to reach out to the people in distress and patted the efforts of the IAF and Army, who reached to them with help, food and relief.
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