A Tale of Two Disasters

ON 9th January, after returning from work, I switched on the car radio and heard the Mayor of Brisbane talking about a deluge about to hit Brisbane and many parts of Queensland including Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley. He spoke about the flood levels in 1974 crisis and how they were told that there would never ever be a repeat of such water levels ever. His words were sounding very ominous.

Dozens of towns were inundated including large areas of Brisbane, in flooding across an area twice the size of Texas, or France and Germany combined. In a matter of hours, water of the size of entire Sydney harbour basin was emptied into Brisbane. Some areas saw a wall of water, 8 metres high.

Watching the horror unfold on national Television has turned out to be a harrowing experience for most people including me. While there have been tales of horror stories and loss of lives, the spirit in which everyone has rallied across to rebuild lives is truly inspiring. Images of people wading in waist deep water drinking beer at the local pub and cheering everyone have been a treat to watch.

Daring Queensland Premier Anna Bligh and Laggard Kerala Chief Minister VS Achutanandan

Watching Kevin Rudd helping move furniture for families in affected areas in the early morning after the aftermath has been inspiring. The Australian disaster management skills are world class. Anna Bligh’s briefings and the style in which were conducted, with no hangers on in the background (as usually happens in Indian Television) have been awe inspiring. Wearing rubber boots and with mud smeared on her cheek, the Queensland Premier was truly hands on.

As the tragedy unfolded on TV, my mind got distracted by another man made tragedy in Sabrimala in the south Indian state of Kerala. Over 100 people were killed in the stampede, when rumours of wild elephants and tigers gone amok were started. As the disaster happened, TimesNow channel reached the scene earlier than the government and rescue officials. During the chaos, you could see the blame game start right in front of your eyes. As someone started the rumour, there was no police and no help or ambulances. Worst the 87 year old, communist Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan said the Government did not provide security as no one had asked for security. He showed no remorse or grief for the victims and his stone faced appearance, callous and acidic remarks was characteristic of how unconnected, Indian politicians are with their people and how thick skinned animals, some of them turn out to be. There were just 7 policemen stationed for managing over 300,000 people.

Any person affected by a natural tragedy in Australia is covered by the social security payments for his basic needs. This is a great assurance in itself which helps bring out the true grit and mental strength in the people of this country. CentreLink officials set up offices in flood prone areas and made it a point to contact the affected people. 300 CentreLink staff were flown to south east Queensland from across Australia to help with the recovery effort. In contrast in India, a person stuck by any natural disaster will have to struggle for years and if at all aid reaches them, the middle men would have taken out 86% from it already.

What a difference can good governance and able politicians make to the lives of ordinary people?
Anna Bligh: May your tribe increase
Achuthanandan: May your tribe decrease

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Kudos to Indian PM, Manmohan Singh who wrote to PM, Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Indian Foreign Minister S M Krishna who wrote to his counterpart Kevin Rudd expressing their deep sorrow on loss of life and property in the wake of floods in Queensland.

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