Anil Narendra
Still I fail to believe that
Uttarakhand has reeled under such devastating floods and faced such ire of the
nature that where ever you cast your eyes, nothing but devastation is visible. Whole
of the area, excepting the Kedarnath Shiva shrine, has been inundated and
devastated. I still remember that day on 19th August 2012, when
along with a few friends, I had started for Kedarnath. As soon as we stepped
out of Delhi on
a three day pilgrim, rains had started and it did not stop till our return
back. The Gaurikund Hotel, where we spent the night, Ram Bara, where on way, we
had snacks with tea, the small iron bridge, where we did photography and
videography, the bazaar, through which we entered the shrine, the hotel, where
after having darshan of the diety, we took our lunch, all have been washed away
in the floods. How horrifying the sight would be, it is hard to visualize. Miraculously,
only the centuries-old shrine of Lord Shiva has been left untouched by the fury
of the floods. It was at Ram Bara near Kedarnath shrine that the cloud-burst
took place on Sunday night. Kedarnath, Ram Bara and Gaurikund, all have been
washed away in the torrents of the mighty floods. Ariel photographs taken from
helicopters make one shudder at the devastating fury and might of the floods.
An eye witness of the tragic happenings, R Dimri, the SP Rudrapryad, who was posted
at the Kedarnath shrine, says that the shrine complex is carpetted with rubble
and boulders. Dead bodies have been scattered all over the complex. Flood
waters along with rubble have entered the sanctum sanctorum of the shrine. Most
of the houses around the shrine have been razed in the incessant rains and the
inundating flow of the water. Ram Bara, situated on the seven kilometer long
Gaurikund-Kedarnath track has been washed away. At any given time, at least
500-600 people used to be present in the Ram Bara market of around 100-150
shops. The death toll here is yet to be confirmed but hundreds of people must
have died here. More than one lakh persons all over the State have been
affected by these floods and loss to the tune of crores of rupees is being
estimated. Whereabouts of many of them is simply not known. It was horrifying to view the houses falling
like pack of cards on the TV. It could only be the grace and wonders of the
Lord Shiva that the jyotirling and
the centuries-old dome are intact amidst this devastation. The Shivalingam, established at the ancient
Kedarnath shrine situated at a height of 3,597 metres, is among the 12 jyotirlingams in the country. According
to the scriptures, the Pandavas had carried penance here to appease Lord Shiva
during their agyatvasa. During their
stay, they constructed the 80 metre high Lord Kedarnath shrine. During my visit
to the shrine, I was impressed by its antiquity. The shrine has statues of Pandavas. The shrine is not well
illuminated and I could guess from the structure of the shrine that it must
have been constructed thousands of years ago. As you enter the shrine, an
unearthly feeling creeps in you, which I am unable to express as it can only be
experienced. By coming to this pious place, one feels as if he has come to the
land of the Gods. It is said that the majestic shrine was named after Kedar,
the king who ruled this land during the period of satayuga. It is also said that the Adi Shankaracharya had got this
shrine renovated. In view of adverse weather, the shrine is opened for public
only during the period from April to November. Devotees in large number from home
and abroad visit this shrine to take darshana
of Lord Kedarnath. Kedarnath pilgrimage is one among the pilgrimages to the
four prominent abodes (char dhamas).
Situated on the Shore of Mandakini River, the Kedarnath shrine is very dark
inside and darshan of Lord Shiva can
only be made with the help of lighted lamp. This shrine has statues of five Pandavas and also of Draupadi. In the
complex outside the Kedarnath shrine, there is an idol of Nandi, the ox, the
carrier of Lord Shiva on a six feet high raised square platform. What should we
call this catastrophe – a natural calamity, a result of our ever increasing
sinful acts or lack of arrangements? I think it is both. The Planning
Commission had warned the Uttarakhand Government two months earlier and advised
it to pay attention towards the safe discharge of flood waters and make
suitable amendment to its present policy in this regard. The Government was
also warned about the embankments along the rivers as such constructions hinder
the natural flow of the rivers. Not only the flow is affected, but these also
stop the development of natural deltas and shut the avenues for the discharge
of water. In a letter sent to the State Government in May 2013, the Commission
had advised the Government to adopt a policy that does not hinder the
development of drainage systems for the rivers. The indiscriminate felling of
the trees, the illegal mining, all these amount to disturbing the ecology. It
is also true that all over the country, at every level, ecological system is
being compromised. If such an apathy towards the ecological system continues,
then despite our having the strong calamity management system, it would be
impossible for us to avoid such conditions that led to the devastation in
Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, in future. It is not a secret that flow of
large and small rivers all over the country is being obstructed, but we see no
initiative to stop the meddling that is being done with the flow of rivers. It
may not be out of place to mention that the rains being witnessed in the month
of June itself, is also not a normal phenomenon. It is unprecedented in the
history of recording of rains in the country, that the monsoon has taken the
whole country in its grip on 16th June itself. Fifty two years ago,
in 1961, such an incident was recorded on 21st June, but that year
the onset of monsoon had no such devastating effect. The weather has been
playing havoc in whole of the region. In the east, the incessant rains have
caused heavy loss to lives and property in Bangladesh ,
Myanmar , Thailand . In
neighbouring Pakistan ,
the torrential rains starting from 26th July last year for about a
month played unprecedented and unimaginable havoc in hilly and desert areas. We
would like to convey our feelings that we share the grief of the families affected
by the recent rains and flood. May the souls of the deceased lie in peace. Om namah Shivay. Har-har Mahadev!
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