Army upset as Bhuj DM accuses it of stealing relief

“In fact, we had to divert a few aircraft to nearby Rajkot because we simply did not have enough space to offload the supplies here, when people from other quake-hit regions beyond Bhuj were screaming for supplies. How can the Collector be so audacious as to make such accusations at this point of the crisis,” the officer said.

The Army too is furious. Said the Commanding Officer of one of the regiments here: “Despite the losses, we have managed to pool in our resources effectively and are not depending on civil supplies. On the grounds outside the cantonment area, we have been running a langar since day one. Within one hour of the quake, our men were out in the town carrying out relief and rescue operations, getting inside the highly precarious structures and bringing survivors and the dead out. The military hospital was the only place where the wounded were getting some aid. Where was the district administration at that time?”

“They did not even realise that the armed forces were also hit by the quake. All our properties have been damaged and there has been tremendous loss in terms of material. We could also qualify as quake victims but we never allowed the situation to overawe us unlike the administration’s men who were not seen anywhere for the first few hours. I wonder, how could they even find time to think of such a preposterous thing. It’s a classic case of an idle mind.”

The Collector was reported to be with the CM, touring the city, and was not available for comments. The AOC, Group Captain S.S.Dhanda, while confirming that such a letter had indeed been received, sought to downplay the issue. “He (Collector) has misunderstood the situation, he has been probably given wrong reports and he did not bother to check with me before sending the letter,” said Dhanda. “The misunderstanding was cleared after my officers went and talked to him,” he added. Dhanda then stressed that the time was not right to start such a controversy when they were faced with a huge task.

Incidentally, despite thousands of mineral water crates, gloves and masks landing at Bhuj — some sent by other Army commands, soldiers were seen working without gloves and masks and pulling out highly decomposed dead bodies with bare hands. “We had requested the administration for gloves and we were told that there were none. There has also not been any vaccination drive for our men despite the dangerous work conditions they have been exposed to,” an Army Major pointed out at one of the relief sites.