Disaster relief in earthquake affected Gujrat
On January 26, 2001 India celebrated Republic Day. As the colorful parades got under way the continent reverberated to the worst earthquake in India's history, measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale.
The epicenter in the northern province of Gujarat was a scene of devastation. The city of Bhuj where 150,000 people lived was turned into rubble with hardly a building left standing. Businesses were ruined, infrastructure torn apart and basic services were rendered non-existent. The physical damage was apparent but the human cost was countless. Thousands of people were killed and injured and whole communities were wiped out.
The memory of the terrible quake that struck Gujrat on January 26, 2000 is vividly etched in the minds of the nation. When the devil of death swooped upon thousands of innocents, houses crumbled like castles of sand. The disorder and chaos, the mangled and crushed bodies and the wails and travails of those who survived, is a tale so distressing that words are rendered speechless.
Guru ji led from the front - to console and heal, and put meaning into the lives of the survivors. A scientific survey and a systematic aid operation followed. In 42 villages, ration depots were setup, thousands of tents were erected and over 1 lac blankets distributed. The Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa (Haryana) achieved the unique distinction from amongst the innumerable organisations from all over the globe to reconstruct the first village and also demonstrate the first urban prototype of a quake resistant house. His Holiness was accompanied by no less than 5000 volunteers whilst several times the number waited in Sirsa for their turn.
The boiling-water proof, Earthquake-proof, termite-resistant plywood houses (endorsed by Japanese structure-engineers) were erected by the dedicated volunteers of Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa.
The first village reconstructed, Village Pratapgarh in Rapar taluka (Bhuj District of Gujrat, India)