THE UNSEEN TRAGEDY OF 2013

16 June 2013, the havoc of disaster In KEDARNATH 

 Disasters has always been challenges for the people living in Himalayas. 

Cloudbursts , landslides and earthquakes are not rare there. 

 I was very young during the earthquake of 1999,

 but i remember  not living in houses due to fear of earthquakes. 

Then their it came with an obnoxious smell, unforgettable and vicious tragedy, 

The June disaster. 

In a place from were people were supposed to go to heaven. 

No one would have imagined the death trap beyond the grandeur of natural beauty.

 And it is beautiful and flowering again.

 It is never like before again because what we have seen remained in our memories 

 Even after 7 years thinking of it is horrifying, the horror that can change your psychology. 

 Let me recount my life spent during those days.

I decided to pursue my higher education from the HNBGU GARHWAL UNIVERSITY.

I dwell in Ukhimath block of Rudraprayag district of Uttarkhand. My residence is far from the shrine of Kedarnath temple, But i can see The Mountain beyond Kedarnath shrine, Mandakini river and Tungnath temple, easily from my village. 

 On 13th June i was heading to my village from Shrinagar Garhwal. After reaching Rudraprayag i boarded in a local cab to Guptakashi, In the cab i met my school friend. He was very positive and filled with the dream of earning good income from this season of Chardham Pilgrimage.

The matter of the fact was the news i had read earlier in the newspaper.

 I told him since the season in Kedarnath has been called off due to strike of local trade organisations as well as their was heavy rainfall warning for three days proceeding 13 June 13. 

When I reached home, sky there was full of dark black clouds, the wind has ghostly appearance. 

It was stranger than usual as i recount now. The clouds towards Kedar valley were circling in cyclonic appearance. Then it started raining more then usual and continuously for three days

.

    I had decided to go back to Sringar Garhwal by 16 of June. It was still raining in the morning of 16 June, as i boarded a Bolero from my village to Augustmuni. My village is on the far side mountain from Kedarnath and alongside mountain of Tungnath temple. So we had no idea until we went down to riverside, the highway along with Mandakini River. 

    The River that day was ripping the sides of mighty mountains. All of us in the Bolero was frightened by horrible seen of river Mandakini. Never ever in my life i have seen the power of water so strong, smelling muddy, trees, cloths, cylinders were flowing like straws. The driver accelerated the Van so that we can move fast from this view, it was very disturbing.Worried by the gigantic view of river my cousin brother started calling to his friends in GauriKund and Songprayag. But it has only made us more anxious.

     What a horrific morning that was. Why and until when human will stop playing with nature? First we heard that the Dam project at mandakini river was totally damaged, the JCBs , Trucks and Generator were flown and engulfed in the river. Than we listen about some mule were also flown away in the current of water. Oh and so on. 

     In Rudraprayag Mandakini was flowing above danger mark, but the vehicles on the Highway were still running. All the way from Home to Sringar in the riverside i had only seen devastation. We were lucky because the highway  also swept away some hours after we crossed the riversides.

     The View in the Sringar Garhwal was not good too. There was a flux of tourist stranded on the roads in the vehicle. No one has seen what is coming in there way. 

 Alas ! people would had taken the weather warning from the Meteorological department seriously. 

The Barrage of the dam in Sringar Garhwal was filled with all flooded water so the dam management opened the gates of Dam which resulted in flood in the lower area of Sringar Garhwal. The highway to Sringar was blocked so we decided to reach our rented room from Naithana brigde on River Alaknanda. 

    The River current was so strong, And there were some people trying to collect logs and commercial gas cylinders carried away in the river. 

Even in calamities there is no limit of human greed. when there is devastation of hope and faith.Misery is someone creating wealth out of the pile of dead bodies. Totally evil limit of human race. 

 This devastation caught my head  seriously, i was still not sure about what happened in Kedar valley but was sure whatever it is, it is obnoxious. We called home and than my brother said sadly the misery of kedarnath. 

        The young men from the villages of Ukhimath always goes to Shrines in the hope of earing money from tourism. And many of them were now missing. There were many mothers who lost their loved sons in  this matrimony of death. Many women widowed. And the few who were lucky enough to survive were lost in mountains.

     The Shrine which opens the gates of heaven now opened the gate of hell. I felt like someone has pierced my heart when i listened that my friend whom i met three days earlier also went missing. What was more disturbing were the in flux of news after the devastation. There were uncounted dead bodies, hungry animals, strayed tourists. Some of the villages near Sonprayag and Gorikund provided shelter for tourist. Tourist stranded they were the most unfortunate ones.

    At some point it is the result of greed of  human race which is causing imbalance in natural phenomenons.