Story of determination & perseverance despite the disaster

August 5th, 2010 was a disastrous day in the history of Leh, Ladakh. Leh which is also known as “Devbhoomi” faced the wrath of Mother Earth. A sudden cloudburst at night caused huge damage of life and property. From luscious crops, to people sleeping in their comfortable homes, everything was swept away in a blink. A total of 600 Cr damage was recorded by Disaster Management Officer, Jigmeet Tipka, and people who witnessed this destruction, felt as if a huge mountain came down with the water from the cloudburst.

Luckily, not far away from Leh was a city known as Choglamasar, where Prathamik Shiksha Varg of Rashtriya Swayamseva Sangh was going on.  The swayamsevaks of the varg  were notified about this tragic event. Kshetra Sangathan Mantri, Shri Jaydev Singh said that “As soon as they heard of the disaster, they decided to conclude their Shiksha Varg then and there & immediately rushed to the site to provide every kind of help that they could offer”.

The Swayamsevaks risked their life and saved 27 people, and immediately arranged food, water, mattress, medicine and mosquito nets to provide some comfort to the victims, during this tough time. As most of them have lost their means of livelihood, Sevabharti coordinated with Ladakh Kalyan Sangh and arranged for training and occupation of these people, and make them self-dependent again.

If we look at the geography of Leh, it is surrounded with five mountains which are covered with snow all year round. This has attracted a lot of tourists in the past but the terrain and the weather also makes resettlement of people that much more difficult. To overcome this challenge, there were plenty of smaller initiatives that sprouted alongside, like provision of chair for barbers, sewing machines for tailors, utensils for dhabas and tools for carpenters. ‘Rantak’ the traditional watermill of Ladakh is a machine used by housewives, for the grinding locally grown cereal crops, wheat and barley. Approximately 240 houses and 250 Rantak machines were swept away in the cloudburst. Sevabharti provided 90 Rantak machines to the people of Leh.

Many volunteering organizations wrapped up their relief work but Sevabharti was determined to provide proper shelter and rehabilitate these homeless people. Therefore Sevabharti went ahead & organized a Medical and Multipurpose Help Center at the solar colony established by Hill Council of Laddakh (A Government organization) to rehabilitate the people. Tensingh Dorjya, a prominent Officer said “By providing 100 homes to the affected people, Sevabharti helped in rehabilitation.  They provided uniform, water tanks and books in universities as well.” From removing rubbles from farms using JCB machines to performing the last rights at the funeral, Swayamsevaks took care of everything successfully.

The then Vibhag Karyawah, Bijaay Chigalmatta said “It was because of the values taught in the Shaakha, that Swayamsevaks of Prathmic Shiksha Varg rushed to the site without wasting any time, and saved the life of 27 people while risking  their life.”

Many relief efforts are still going on to fully rehabilitate affected families, even after ten years of this tragic incident.

Contact : Jay Dev Singh

Mobile No. : +91 9418005256