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Journalism of Courage
The horror left behind by the tsunami is still etched in the minds of these three young men. They had closely seen the pain and sufferings after the giant tidal waves hit the southern coast last December. So when they saw images of destruction caused by the quake on TV, they immediately headed for J-K to help the survivors. They reached Uri three days later. But Joe Velu, Sebastian, and Rakesh Sharma were caught unprepared for the agony they were about to witness in the devastated villages in Uri.
Joe, from Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu, who worked with an NGO during post-tsunami relief work, said ‘‘We had helped tsunami victims. But, here things are very different. The tsunami washed everything away, leaving behind calm. In villages of Uri, blocked roads, damaged houses and fear of landslides are hampering relief efforts.’’ He said that the biting cold was making lives miserable for survivors. ‘‘At many places, we found people without any shelter.’’
The group began their relief mission—they even roped in local volunteers—with a remote village along the LoC. ‘‘Any tragedy brings devastation. We are here to help our brothers and sisters,’’ said Joe.
The trio has a list of villages which they intend reaching with help. They chose Salamabad as the first destination. For a while, the blankets and food packets brought by them managed to bring smiles on faces of the families who had lost everything to the quake. ‘‘We can give relief to few families. But it is a goodwill gesture,’’ said Joe. ‘‘We want to tell them that in this period of grief, the entire country is with them,’’he said.
Sebastian is Joe’s friend and a professional photographer in Madurai. He said pictures he took of quake victims would haunt him for ever. ‘‘I have seen young boys and girls with broken limbs and arms crying in pain,’’ he said. ‘‘It will take villagers decades to come out of the trauma.’’ Sebastian said the tsunami had taught them that people should help others in distress. ‘‘Our area bore the brunt of the tsunami. So, we realise how a tragedy can change the lives of people.’’
To reach out to the affected villages, this group has also roped in some local volunteers to help them distribute relief material. ‘‘We are distributing blankets, warm clothes and food packets,’’ said Rakesh Sharma, another friend of Joe. Sharma is from Delhi and had helped in tsunami relief efforts in Tamil Nadu. ‘‘Seeing the condition here, we are going to raise fresh donations for the victims,’’ he said. ‘‘ Villagers require more tents, food and warm clothes,’’ he said.
‘‘They are dedicated and try to reach every remote village,’’ said Parvez Ahmad, a local volunteer accompanying the group. ‘‘Their dedication motivated me to work with them.’’
