If one wants to give financial assistance, to whom is it best given ?

dsv

----- Original Message -----
From: "ESG India S2L" <esg@...>
To: <andamanicobar@...>
Sent: Friday, February 04, 2005 10:08 AM
Subject: [andamanicobar] Report of Relief Work Visit to Nancowry Div,
Nicobar


>
>
> Please find enclosed a report by Dr Sanjiv Lewin of St John's Medical
> College Hospital on his relief work and vist to the Nicobar Islands.
>
> Best
>
> Leo Saldanha
> Environment Support Group (R)
> S-3, Rajashree Apts.
> 18/57, 1st Main, SRK Gardens
> Bannerghatta Road, Jayanagar
> Bangalore 560041. INDIA
> Telefax: 91-80-26531339/26534364
> Fax: 91-80-51179912/26341977
> Email: esg@...; esg@...
> Web: www.esgindia.org
>
>
>
>
>
> TOUR REPORT
>
> VISIT TO NANCOWRY DIVISION, NICOBAR
>
> 20TH TO 28TH JANUARY 2005
>
> Background
> A series of tsunami waves struck the eastern coast of India in the morning
> of 26th December. As the extent of death and destruction became clearer,
> Care Today (CTF) decided to respond to the situation. Appeals for funds
were
> issued in India Today, Aajtak and Red FM, and funds were immediately
> committed towards an emergency medical team from St. John's Hospital
> Bangalore who went on to work in Nancowry division of Nicobar Islands.
>
> The Nancowry division is the central part of the Nicobar group of islands,
> between Car Nicobar in the north and Little and Great Nicobar in the
south,
> and is headquartered at Komorta. The other islands in the division include
> Bambooka, Chowra, Kachal, Nancowry, Teresa and Trinket, and were badly
> affected by the tsunami as can be seen from the attached table. I received
a
> permit to visit this area on the 19th (entry here is restricted and
requires
> permission from the administration) and was fortunate to find a helicopter
> flying to Komorta on the 20th itself.
>
> Table I: Dead and Missing in Nicobar Group
> Source: Deputy Commissioner (Andamans) Office
> Island Population (2001) No. Dead No. Missing No. Injured
>
> Car Nicobar 20,292 768 370 264
> Chowra 1,385 41 15
> Teressa 2,026 50 9
> Katchal 5,312 345 4310 1
> Nancowry 927 1 3 24
> Kamorta 3,412 51 387 144
> Trinket 432 3 234 192
> Kondul 150 38
> Pilomillow 145 163
> Little Nicobar 353 43
> Great Nicobar 7566 336 220 826
> Tillangchang 13
> Bambooka 55 17
> Total Nicobar 42,068 1839 5565 1451
>
>
> Aims of the Visit
> * Assess the damage caused by the tsunami in the islands of Nancowry.
> * Identify the most affected communities and their major needs.
> * Identify the agencies and institutions that are active on the
> ground.
> * Assess the possibility of a role for CTF in the future - this
> includes understanding the government's rehabilitation policy (once it is
> formalized) and its gaps, identifying specific needs, and meeting local
> institutions that are likely to be there over the long term.
> * And finally, build credibility for CTF within the area.
>
> Activities
> 20th January Port Blair to Komorta
> Meeting with Assistant Commissioner (Komorta)
> Meeting with Tribal Council
> Meeting with A&N Environment Team
> 21st January Komorta to Kachal
> Meeting with Special Relief Officer (Kachal)
> Visit to relief camp at Mildera-2, meeting with
> captains
> 22nd January Visit to Upper Kachal, meeting with 2nd Captain
> Visit to Jhoola village
> Meeting with TISS team and SRO
> 23rd January Meeting with Lt. Col Sharma of 5 GR
> Day at Kapanga watching clearing of the jetty
> 24th January Kachal to Komorta, meeting with AC Komorta
> Meeting with 1st Captain, Trinket
> 25th January Meeting with Commander Mann, CO of INS Karadip
> Meeting with youth leader of Kakana
> Meeting with AC Komorta
> 26th January Meeting with Aysha Majeed of Tribal Council
> Leave Komorta for Port Blair on MV Yerawa
> 28th January Reach Port Blair
>
> Impressions / Discussions - Komorta
>
> Komorta is not badly affected by the tsunami - the main reasons for this
are
> that the islands of Nancowry and Kachal provide it cover, and that there
is
> high ground in the immediate vicinity of the coast. The rising of the sea
> level has resulted in access to the jetty being covered during high tide.
> Most of the infrastructure in the town is in place, and it has 24 hours
> electricity. The main market is functional and basic meals are available
in
> the local eateries.
>
> People from other islands have moved into Komorta. Some, such as those
from
> Trinket, propose to resettle in Komorta and have identified land in Vikas
> Nagar (some 15 km away from Komorta town on a road that is yet to be
> completed) to do so. Others, such as those from Nancowry, plan to go back
to
> their own islands.
>
> A young Assistant Commissioner, Mr. Ashok Kumar Meena, who joined here in
> early January directly from his probation, heads the administration. He is
> grappling mainly with the problems of supplying relief material to
far-flung
> corners of Komorta such as Kakana, and to the other islands in the
vicinity.
> His main other concerns were the need for tools, implements and housing
> material to enable people to move out of the camps and back to their
homes,
> boats with outboard motors to enable more frequent supply of relief
> material, and the need to get the schooling system functional again.
>
> The main non-governmental institution in Komorta is the Tribal Development
> Council - the son of the Queen of Nancowry, Mr. Rasheed, controls this and
> much of the trade between Komorta and the rest of the world. He was away
in
> Port Blair during my visit; we met briefly as he departed on the same
> helicopter that I arrived in. His sister, Ms. Aysha Majeed, is actively
> involved with the council and has a good reputation both with the
> administration and within the community. Another local organization is the
> Nicobary Youth Association - its relationship with Mr. Rasheed was unclear
> to me.
>
> Each tribal village is led by a group of captains, who are elected to the
> post for a fixed term. They have the authority to act on behalf of the
> community in its interaction with the government and other outside
agencies.
> This enables the process of relief distribution to be relatively efficient
> and egalitarian. Many of the captains in Trinket and Kamorta are young and
> in their first term - some of them are overwhelmed by the situation and
> others are discovering hidden capabilities. Mr. Rasheed's hold over the
> captains is debatable as some of them are well educated and do not see the
> need for a go-between.
>
> The captains are busy with the distribution of relief, relocation of the
> communities and other immediate issues and see the need for a discussion
on
> the long-term future of their communities once the immediate issues are
> under control, probably in two months time.
>
> Impressions / Discussions - Kachal
>
> Kachal had a distinctive settlement pattern before the tsunami - the
> government infrastructure was mainly on the east coast in Kapanga
> (completely wiped out by the tsunami, see table), the Nicobarese tribals
> were based in settlements along the shores around the island, and there
was
> a settler population based in Mildera in the center of the island (on high
> ground). The settlers include Sri Lankan refugees brought here under an
> international agreement, labourers brought here under the tribal pass
system
> and illegal immigrants brought in by labour contractors (of whom the
numbers
> are unclear). The deaths have taken place mainly among the Nicobarese, the
> government servants and the illegal immigrants, and there is considerable
> dispute over the numbers because of the last category. The other settlers
> have not lost lives or property in the tsunami.
>
> Infrastructure: All infrastructure, except in Mildera, has been destroyed.
> The jetty at Kapanga has ceased to exist, and all supplies to Kachal have
to
> be transferred from ship to small boats in rough open sea to reach the
> island. Large items, and large volumes, are thus difficult to supply to
> Kachal. I had myself witnessed the efforts of two naval landing crafts
> trying to find a way to get a truck and a bulldozer on to the island - the
> mission had to be abandoned. The lack of a jetty has led to worries about
> supply of electricity in Kachal as the generator is run on diesel and this
> is difficult to transfer on to the island and will be impossible once the
> seas get rougher.
>
> Government accommodation, offices and schools have also been destroyed.
> Staying here is extremely difficult, even for the senior government
officers
> posted here, with the lack of basic accommodation facilities, poor
> communications and shortages of electricity, food and water. The Special
> Relief Officer (an IAS officer on posting from Delhi) spends much of his
> time refusing requests from government servants to be sent elsewhere.
>
> Most of the teachers of Kachal died in the tsunami, leaving the schooling
> system in a mess and the prospects for the 79 students appearing for their
> class X and XII examinations bleak. In addition, those students who were
> studying outside the state (one person doing a Masters in MCC Chennai,
> another doing an MBBS in Maharashtra, etc.) are having difficulty reaching
> their institutions and, once there, meeting their general expenses as all
> money has been washed away. The situation is similar for those studying in
> Port Blair.
>
> The banking system here is also in a shambles with the bank (Corporation
> Bank) having been washed away along with all records, those with the bank
> and those with the bank account holders (except for the settlers). There
is
> therefore no way of knowing who has how much money in the bank.
>
> Table II: Situation in villages of Kachal
> Source: Tribal Development Council, Komorta
> Settlement Population (2001) Dead Missing Current Location
>
> Jhansin 250 10 153 Mildera-1
> Jhoola 372 9 76 Mildera-1 & Beachdera
> Kapanga 3519 21 2858 Mildera-2
> Kulatapangia (Ponda) 370 317 Mildera-1
> Mildera 1825 7 Mildera
> Vyatapu 551 50 223 East Bay
> West Bay 1050 Only 4 are still alive Mildera-1
>
> The Relief Camps: There are four relief camps that are functional in
Kachal.
> They are Upper Kachal (East Bay) with 275 occupants, Mildera-1 with 625,
> Mildera-2 with 520 and Beachdera with 403. The other main settlement in
the
> island is unaffected Mildera, with 1255 occupants (all of whom are
> non-tribals). Food is not a problem at present, with about a month's
supply
> currently in stock. The main need is for lungis, soap, sanitary napkins,
> mosquito repellant, toothpaste and toothbrushes. The Upper Kachal (East
Bay)
> camp is relatively remote, about an hour away from Kapanga by boat, all
> other camps are in the vicinity of Mildera.
>
> Livelihoods: The traditional tribal way of life, of having coconut
> plantations and depending upon the income from copra, is shattered with
the
> plantations being largely destroyed. These will require 7 to 10 years
before
> they can recover. Until then, people will require other means of
livelihood.
> The Nicobarese say that an option is that the government puts in money for
> the rebuilding of infrastructure on the island and does not allow labour
to
> come in, thus enabling the Nicobarese to provide the necessary labour.
>
> Other issues: There are two other issues that would affect any long-term
> intervention here. The first is the leadership vacuum among the tribals -
> all the first captains died in the tsunami, as did most of the other
> leaders. There did not appear to be any functional institutions among the
> tribals, and the hold of intermediatories such as Mr. Rasheed was minimal.
> The second is an undercurrent of tension between settlers and tribals -
> apart from the Upper Kachal area, all the tribals want to settle in and
> around Mildera (where the settlers already are) and have identified some
of
> the 614 hectares of land available with the Rubber Corporation, some of
> which has already been encroached upon by settlers. In addition, the
> settlers are upset about the relief and compensation packages being
targeted
> at the tribals.
>
> The Main Needs
>
> For an NGO, these, in my opinion, are as follows -
> The short term -
> * Trauma counseling: The affected community will have difficulty in
> handling the large losses suffered, and the psychological effects are
> beginning to show. There was one suicide attempt while I was there (a
young
> girl drank a bottle of dettol, she had just found out that her parents
were
> no more). There is an urgent need for professional trauma counselors to
> enable the community to deal with their situation.
> * Finances for Students: Students studying in Port Blair or the
> mainland should be provided with cash to enable them to join their
> institutions and some funds to enable them to meet expenses for the near
> future.
> * Coaching Classes: Students giving their classes X and XII exams need
> tutors brought in with the sole aim of enabling them to pass.
> * Building material and implements: There is already a move by the
> government to provide building material and implements to each family so
> that temporary shelters can be up before the monsoons. The pace of this
> needs to be stepped up.
> * Cash injunctions into the community: The immediate relief of Rs.
> 2,000 provided by the government can be supplemented.
> * Resource persons in each village: It would be useful to identify a
> group of educated youth, both men and women, in each village and train
them
> to be resource persons for the longer term rehabilitation effort.
>
> A long-term strategy is difficult to visualize until the government's
> rehabilitation package is clearer.
>
> Should Care Today intervene?
>
> The Nancowry division is clearly among the worst affected parts of India
> from the tsunami of 26th December. At the same time, this area provides
some
> special difficulties to any organization planning an intervention in
relief
> and rehabilitation. These are -
> * The area is extremely remote and difficult to reach.
> * There are no local organizations through which to work.
> * Basic communication and infrastructure facilities are unavailable.
> * Government permission is required for any intervention.
>
> At the same time, Care Today has collected its funds from Indian citizens
> for the use of the worst affected communities in India, especially those
> that other organizations are not able to reach for reasons such as the
> above.
>
> I would therefore like to discuss the possibility of Care Today working in
> Nancowry division over the next year with its Directors and with the
Andaman
> and Nicobar Administration.
>
> Immediate action already taken includes setting up a daily boat service
> between Kapanga and Upper Kachal on Kachal Island, for which an advance
has
> already been paid to the local boat owner. The service began on 24th
January
> and will continue for a month. In addition, a list of Kachal students
> studying in the mainland has been obtained from the SRO and I will shortly
> ensure that a grant will be available for them at their institutions.
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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