Jibran Nazir
Srinagar
Photo: Bilal Bahadur
Squatting before the debris of his gutted house, Fayaz Ahmad looks disturbingly lost. The man in his mid-thirties has come to community kitchen with his family for lunch. The kitchen which is enclosed in a prefabricated tent was built for the victims of a devastating fire that engulfed 23 houses in Buchwara in Dal-gate area of Srinagar on November 21.
Fayaz’s family is among the 36 families that were affected by the raging flames. Most of the houses have been completely damaged, leaving about 400 persons homeless.
“I am not in a condition to rebuild my house,” says Fayaz, looking at his children with excruciated eyes. The others seem to convey the same sense.
For Shaista, a student of class 12th, seeing her house burning, helplessly, has left her heartbroken and distressed.
“I was preparing for my on-going exams when I heard a blast,” recalls Shaista. The explosion was caused by the gas cylinder in a neighbouring house.
“Upon seeing the flames flaring up, I rushed out of my house and soon the fire engulfed my house too,” she sobs. “I am not sure if I will be able to take next papers. Nothing was left in my house, not even my books.”
After the incident, the families have been living in a make-do accommodation of fabricated tents provided to them by one of the NGOs—doing the relief work. “Nearly fifty tents were provided to us, but it gets extremely difficult to survive in severe cold weather,” says Showkat Ahmad Sheikh, president of relief co-ordination committee.
Showkat’s house that was home to two families including his brother’s was also completely gutted in the fire incident.
A local trying to help firefighters at Buchwara, Dalgate. Photo: Bilal Bahadur
The government has distributed cheques of Rs 2000 and five blankets to each of the affected families. But the residents term it too little.
“That paltry sum can’t even buy us bread and butter for a week, leave alone rebuilding our houses,” says Fayaz Ahmad, waiting in a queue for lunch outside the community kitchen.
Most of the affected families belong to BPL category and were already suffering financially due to the turmoil in the valley.
Javed Ahmad, who would sell fruits on a handcart to provide for his family that includes his three unmarried sisters has lost everything in the devastating fire.
“I would store the fruits at home as it was the only way for making my living”, Javed says. With his house, he also lost the source of earning – fruits and the hand-cart.
“I would place my hand-cart near my house. It also went up in flames.”
While expressing concern regarding the sanitation facility, Abdul Hamid, another victim, says authorities should consider availing sanitation facilities for us. “It gets difficult,” he says, “especially for women to attend nature’s call when no such facility is available.”
Firefighters trying to control flames at Buchwara, Dalgate. Photo: Bilal Bahadur
Immediately after the incident, several NGOs jumped into action for relief work at a time when government is paying no heed to them, says Khalid Bashir, Secretary Jama’at-e-Islami Zilah Srinagar.
JeI, says Khalid, swiftly responded to the calamity that befall on the Dal-gate families. Since early morning today, the members of the affected families have been working with JeI volunteers to build quarters where the affected families can spend the winter season before rebuilding their houses. The shelter would consist of ply walls and corrugated tin roof.
“Keeping in view the harsh winter season, we decided to build a temporary shelter for the affected families”, says Bashir Ahmad Lone, Ameer-e-Zilah Srinagar of Jama’at-e-Islami.
The organisation can accommodate about twenty families in these temporary quarters, says Khalid. “And further are ready to provide any kind of help within our capacity.”
But as chill is intensifying in valley, the affected families decry that surviving in these shelters wouldn’t be possible for them.
“It would get impossible to live within these prefabricated tents after a few days when it would snow,” says Showkat. “So, our immediate requirement was to arrange for a shelter.”
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