When Kerala faced its worst floods in a century, the state바카라s police force scripted a new tale of heroism and compassion. From leading the rescue operations to cleaning up the flood-affected houses, the men in khaki uniform put up a brave and humane face in times of the calamity.
바카라On 8th of August onwards, the situation of the natural calamity vis-a-vis police changed,바카라 Kerala police chief Lokanath Behera told Outlook at the police headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram on August 20 even as he was busy coordinating the rescue operations. 바카라We were rattled. Police stations were unable to handle the flood of distress calls. ,바카라 he said, pausing to take a call seeking clearance for Maharashtra Health Minister바카라s visit to Kerala along with medical aid to the flood-affected people. Behera instructed the caller to direct the minister and his team to the Cochin naval base, as the Nedumbassery airport was closed due to floods, or to send them to the Trivandrum airport.
바카라We had no order (to go by). We decided to go suo moto,바카라 he said. 바카라We put 15,000 policemen on rescue ops along with other officials. Men and women were added as the situation worsened, until 40,000 pairs of boots were on the ground. Most police stations were emptied of staff as the flood took precedence. We did not have helicopters, but we have local knowledge바카라this saved many lives," he said.
In Kochi, on the intervening night of August 7-8, Sudhesh Kumar, ADGP in charge of coastal security, happened to be handling a search-and-rescue operation after a ship had hit a boat. There was no official word till now, but he noticed the weather . 바카라I could see what was happening바카라The rainfall was intense and the sea level was visibly rising,바카라 he told Outlook. Having been around a bit바카라a UN stint and a key role in setting up the NDMA바카라Sudhesh could recognise a coming catastrophe when he sees one. And he was seeing one.
바카라I informed the DGP of the rising waters. He immediately made me nodal officer for rescue, with the Kerala Police in the lead. We were soon joined by other forces,바카라 he said. Within 24 hours, 400 boats were mobilised from fishermen, that became the backbone of the rescue ops. 바카라Fishermen volunteered to help too,바카라 he said.
In the absence of a disaster forecasting and response mechanism, local intelligence acted on its own. 바카라We are gathering all information related to floods and rescue and reporting to the Chief Minister twice a day. We are constantly monitoring all dams in the state,바카라 said T.K. Vinod Kumar, ADGP in charge of internal security.
When Outlook met the ADGP, he was busy on phone instructing his men to bust a specific piece of fake news related to flood that was doing rounds at the time. In times of the calamity, fake news was evidently causing headaches for the force.
Alappuzha SP, Surendran S, who led the rescue operations in the severely-affected district, told Outlook that proper strategy in rescue operations helped minimise the death toll. 바카라Chengannur had become an island. It was tough to carry out rescue at night. Several boats were damaged. Some police men fell in the water,바카라 said the SP. 바카라Rescue ops were managed by available police force and other limited forces for the first two days. Difficult areas were accessed by navy personnel while the air force went to places beyond that,바카라 he said.
As per the data provided by police on August 20, 169 teams of NDRF (with 173 boats), 6 army columns (13 Engineering Task Force and 4 Column Defence Security Force with 104 boats), 83 navy team (with 72 boats), 22 air force helicopters, 30 groups of coast guard (with with 23 boats and 12 life raft) were deployed in the rescue ops. Besides, personnel from BSF, CRPF, RAF, CISF, Tamil Nadu Fire Service, Odisha Fire Service and Kerala Fire Service were also involved in the mission. Local fishermen, who turned out to be the real heroes in the entire operation, were also involved with 514 fisheries boats.
DGP Behera, however, said the challenge for the police is not over yet. 바카라Rehabilitation is the next big thing. Some part of rehabilitation has to be done by the police,바카라 he said. Kerala police is also actively participating in the clean up drive in the state after the floods. 바카라I have arranged the police orchestra to play in the relief camps to relieve people from the mental trauma,바카라 said Behera.
