3rd Anniversary of the Uttarakhand floods

17 June marked the third anniversary of the Uttarakhand floods that killed more than 5000 people and left the infrastructure of the state in shambles. The intensity of the floods was such that the state government has not been able to arrive at a number of ‘official’ deaths in the disaster, with many families of the deceased yet to receive a death certificate.

In the aftermath of the disaster, a report by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) has indicated that unregulated construction of dams in the Alaknanda and Mandakini basins, along with adverse weather conditions, could have led to the flooding.  Human intervention is increasingly seen to be the cause of disasters in the Uttarakahand, with recent reports that the fire in April 2016 leading to a large-scale destruction of trees and forest cover could have been man made.

Despite the widespread destruction of infrastructure and huge toll of the floods in the state, there are signs of recovery: people are making their way back to the pilgrimage site of Kedarnath, and the ‘Valley of flowers’, a popular tourist destination, opened to the public for the first time in 3 years. There are untold stories of the strength and resilience of survivors in the face of calamity, everyday individuals building their lives from scratch, after they saw it washed away three years ago.

Pragya has been working to rehabilitate the livelihoods of the people in the areas that are worst affected by the floods, by providing the people with alternate sources of income, in a state whose economy is geared toward revenue from tourism. We are also piloting a grassroots, citizen - led early warning system to be implemented in the districts of the Uttarakhand in the coming year. 3 years on, we remember all the people who lost their lives in this tragedy, and the lessons remain clear: concerted conservation efforts and minimizing human intervention in the environment are a necessity if we are to avoid tragedy on such a scale in the near future.

Reaching out to earthquake ravaged Nepal

April 25th 2015 will be remembered vividly in Nepal for a long time to come. This was the day, one year ago, when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake jolted Nepal violently leaving nearly 9000 people killed and forcing more than a million out of their homes. Towns and historic monuments turned to mere rubble in a matter of seconds and the entire nation was devastated. 
Pragya has been working in the Nepal Himalayan region for 
nearly a decade. We have been addressing sustainable 
development of the mountain districts through our 
programmes on education & skill building, WASH, livelihoods 
and advocacy. The existing on ground presence helped us to promptly respond to the emergency and undertake rapid relief operations based on essential understanding of 
accessibility and procurement channels. 

Pragya Team in Kathmandu procured and transported relief material 
to the affected areas and ensured its prompt and effective 
distribution, at times amidst continuing aftershocks and incessant rains, to reach out to those in need. 
Here is a brief summary of our relief activities in Nepal:
Outreach: 5 districts; 7146 people 
Relief materials provided: 
5,789 kilograms of food grains; 1,266 hygiene items; 2,117 packs of baby food, glucose, ORS; 22 blankets, tarpaulins, ground sheets; 800 packs of ready to eat food; 5 consignments of medicines; and 1,332 Galvanized Iron Sheets for temporary shelter. 

From the onset of the relief operations, Pragya team had been involved in carrying out area specific need assessments for formulation of effective rehabilitation strategies. Once the activities for immediate relief provision were over, we have been focusing on rehabilitation activities in remote and impoverished settlements affected by the earthquake. 
These include work on WASH, healthcare and livelihoods related interventions focused on the long term rehabilitation needs of the people. There is still a long way to go but we are confident that ongoing efforts as well as the resilience of the people will ensure that the scars of this disaster fade away. 

Any support towards this effort would go a long way in aiding the earthquake survivors in rebuilding their lives.

Reaching out to people in flood hit Jammu & Kashmir

Pragya is currently working to respond to the needs of the affected people in the Himalayan state of Jammu & Kashmir that has been devastated by one of the worst floods in 103 years. With our field officers coordinating efforts from Srinagar and Jammu, Pragya is reaching out to flood-victims in Jammu, Reasi, Kulgam, Srinagar, Pulwama, Budgam, Anantnag, Baramulla and Bandipora districts, which are among the worst affected. (View map)

Our sincere thanks to Aarti Drugs Ltd., Agility India Pvt. Ltd., Amdocs Information Security, BP Foundation , Chambal Fertilisers & Chemicals Ltd, Crompton Greaves Ltd, Godfrey Phillips India, Happy World, Hitachi India Pvt. Ltd., Indian Cultural Exchange - Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, InterGlobe Aviation Ltd-IndiGo, Jet Airways (India) Ltd, Paul Wurth India, Perfetti Van Melle India Pvt. Ltd, SpiceJet Ltd, Vestige Marketing Pvt. Ltd., Young Managers Forum - JK Lakshmi Cement ltd. and all individual supporters who have helped us reach out to those in need. 

Thanks to our supporters, we have reached 9954 items of hygiene kits, 282 packs of baby food, 914 nutrition-packs for children, 102 medicine kits and bulk quantities during health camps, 13332 kg food grains and spices, and 330 ltr of cooking oil,8287 packs of ready-to-eat food items, 1949 blankets, 160 sets of utensils/emergency lights, 2148 ltr water and 22040 water purifying tablets, 914 warm wear kits for children, so far. Current efforts are focused on addressing needs for warm wear before winter sets in. (Read more about our outreach)

To join our efforts, please write to: research@pragya.org or call +91 9810188066.
(More information)

Rehabilitation work for flood hit Himalayan villages

From the onset of its relief operations for the flood affected Himalayan districts in June 2013, Pragya staff has been involved in carrying out area specific need assessments, which helped in formulation of effective rehabilitation strategies with inputs from key stakeholders. Pragya is in the midst of implementing its rehabilitation plan in the four affected districts viz. Rudraprayag, Pithoragarh, Chamoli and Uttarkashi. The interventions are spread across various sectors to reinstate people most affected by the floods. Click here for more on Pragya's work related to flood rehabilitation in Uttarakhand.

Regular health camps & psycho-social counselling sessions are being conducted in flood-affected villages by competent & qualified personnel. Pre-fabricated toilets (in order to ensure quicker installations) are being set up for households that have suffered severe damage to their houses. Covered water storage tanks with filtration units are being provided to the communities for ensuring safe potable water. A cadre of youth volunteers has been created in the flood affected districts as a Helpline to spread awareness and assist people to avail newly introduced schemes and provisions for flood-affected people/communities in the state, facilitating them with necessary paper work and procedures. Pragya is also working to ensure livelihood security for the households that are severely affected in terms of livelihoods due to the flashfloods in Uttarakhand. Households are being provided material support and technical assistance for setting up suitable low-cost greenhouses, along with vegetable seeds & saplings, farm tools etc., for undertaking cultivation of short-gestation, high-value vegetable crops for sale. Pragya is in process of initiating an in-depth research for customised livelihood solutions for the flood affected families.