Chennai floods: when Human spirit outshone the Rains

Submerged houses.. (source)	..and flyovers weren't spared as well (source)

Chennai, Cuddalore and other northern parts of Tamil Nadu have been reeling under a monumental crisis, in recent times. Yes Tsunami was a big disaster that perhaps claimed more lives, but that was more like a hit-and-run case, whereas the Chennai rains have been giving a slow death by systematically strangulating the city, its infrastructure and the residents. 

Debates continue to rage whether this was less of a natural disaster, and more a man-made one due to inefficient urban planning, greedy profiteering by 'encashing' river beds, and costly inaction by officials in the critical few days leading up to the crisis. However, the immediate priority and focus has rightly been towards providing succor and rehabilitation for the people most impacted by this massive tragedy. 

"Adversity does not build character, it reveals it."

People in flood-affected areas have demonstrated great character in these testing times, by helping each other - whether it was by opening one's homes freely to host others, lending food / supplies or volunteering with search-and-rescue / relief management operations. Its remarkable that people did all this, while the water levels kept raising in their own homes. Someone joked that this is one tragedy where we've had more volunteers than victims! Such has been the spirit.

Celebrities, corporates and several organizations have been doing their part right from the well-known faces such as RJ Balaji, Siddharth to thousands of unknown individuals like Senthil Murugan  of Cuddalore, who have been selflessly devoting time to make a difference in their own ways. Its equally heartening to hear about several thousands who have come together from all parts of the country to lend a helping hand to the region.

Apparently, the power shutdown and total breakdown in telephone communications had further amplified the magnitude, by creating a panic situation. In today's mobile age, inability to reach loved ones for even an hour, amidst free-flowing bad news in the background heightens one's anxiety levels to the peak. The initial apathy by national media notwithstanding, this is an area where Social media came to the rescue and scored handsomely. Twitter hashtags to call out for urgent help, Facebook posts to coordinate relief work, Google spreadsheets to consolidate volunteer details worked magically by accelerating free flow of information, near real-time. However, technology does come with its limited down-sides, such as the circulation of stale information or the few instances of rumours doing the rounds - you wouldn't have missed the 'supposedly' pregnant lady in Mogappair who was 'in labor' for over 2 weeks, OR the crying, abandoned child searching for parents all over chennai OR the crocodiles doing their shopping rounds in T. Nagar!

The fight is not over, with more rains forecasted for Chennai. However, thankfully the major hurdle has been crossed, with complete awareness of the problem at hand, relief machinery in full swing and people being prepared for the upcoming rain spells. Here's wishing that everyone stays strong & safe, and perseveres for a speedy recovery!