Costly Lessons

Lessons – how costly they can be?

It has now become a routine to blame the dam management for any havoc downstream! Is it not painful to those who suffer loss of properties and invaluable human lives? It has earlier happened in the infamous chennai floods and now Idukki. While in chennai, the PWD was blamed for not resorting to timely openings, in Idukki also similar complaints are heard and even put forward in SC! Is it that, those filing affidavits  wantonly whip up the brewing animosities between the neighbours without any resort to accept the ‘nature’s fury’?

While one can accept the mismanagement of Chembarambakkam lake for the 2015 floods, the same may not be true in MP dam. prima facie it appears, there is an avoidable lack of coordination between the authorities of Kerala and Tamil Nadu during the crisis period: when the Damocles sword is hanging, the state authorities of Kerala seems to be writing letters to their counterparts in TN to regulate Mullai  Periyar water release! With copious rainfalls both in the catchments of Idukki and Mullai  Periyar, is it not a do or die situation? there should have been regular emergency meetings between all the concerned! With SC orders on the state petition to limit the max permissible water level in the MP dam in place, the discretionary regulation to limit the release of water would be a double edged weapon! Writing letters is merely to pass the buck!

With chaotic  dense habitation in the downstream restricting the unhindered drainage coupled with ‘occasional’ heavy rainfalls, such incidents would not be infrequent in the coming years. Unfortunately, The sufferer is always the ‘voiceless’ poor who would be given crumps by the rulers at the end of the day.

It is high time, that Appropriate technological strategies must be spelt out by preparing an ‘Emergency Operating Procedures’ manual that would be a ready guiding reckoner for those managing the dam; this would  limit the damages; actions would be Prompt, adequate and appropriate; responsibilities could also be fixed! 

Would we ever learn lessons after calamities at least?