Indian media: Floods are ‘man-made’ disaster
The Indian army is rescuing people from the flood-affected areas in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh states
MT NEWS: Media in India feel rampant construction, mining and massive power projects in the northern Himalayan states have contributed to the disaster the monsoon floods have brought to the region.
“Excessive rainfall provides only a partial explanation for why the ‘abode of the Gods’ – the Himalayan hill states – has been battered beyond measure in recent days. For man’s excesses and follies have also been a factor in the destruction that nature has wrought,” says The Hindu.
The paper, in another article, says nature is avenging its exploitation.
The Times of India feels “the growing frequency of extreme climactic events is emboldening the claim that hydropower projects, encroachments of riverbeds by buildings, and blasting of mountains to build roads are making hill states more susceptible to disaster”.
“The destruction is man-made because environmental laws have been openly flouted in the states for over a decade and the government has allowed that to happen,” says a report in the Hindi daily, Dainik Jagaran.
Newspapers, including The Times of India, also say the government is not doing enough to rescue people from the flood-affected areas.
“A couple of dozen helicopters flying a few hundred sorties a day to rescue a region full of distressed citizens is emblematic of millennial India’s broken promises,” the paper says.
The Pioneer sees a ray of hope for “the dying river Yamuna” in Delhi amid these tragic stories.
Environmentalists feel the flood waters will wash away the filth and help replenish the aquatic life and depleted groundwater levels in the capital, the paper adds.
Meanwhile, PM Manmohan Singh has appealed to all citizens “to donate generously” to the government’s flood relief fund and help “distressed fellow countrymen rebuild their lives”, reports the Zee News.
