India has witnessed several calamities, natural or man-made, to date. Those took several lives and made people come to their knees! However, in every case, the death toll or casualties could have been even more if some people had not risked their lives to save others.
We call them humanitarian workers! However, do you get the scope to thank them for their selfless services? Now you can see as every year; the 19th of August is celebrated as World Humanitarian Day!
Before celebrating this special day this year, let us remind you of some instances where humanitarian workers saved the day!
1. Bikaner-Guwahati derailment
On a winter evening in January 2022, the country learned about one of the deadliest train derailments of the Bikaner-Guwahati Express. As per official news, 9 people were killed, and 50 were injured.
However, the casualties could have increased if the local villagers did not come and rushed to the accident site immediately to start the rescue work. Only with their help could the government relief force send the injured to a nearby hospital.
For instance, Moksidul Islam, a local farmer, was among the first to start the rescue work along with others. We can’t thank them enough for the work they had done solely based on humanitarian grounds!
2. Amarnath cloud burst disaster
Reviving the memories of the cloud-burst flood of Kedarnath in 2013, this year also, the pilgrims experienced a similar incident on their Amarnath Yatra! Almost 40 people were missing, and 65 were injured during that disaster.
However, The Indian Army sent 6 rescue teams to the spot. At the same time, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), J&K Police and Indo-Tibetan Border Police also assisted in the recuse operations.
Due to these humanitarian workers, 15,000 people were safely evacuated. Additionally, the government increased the security deployment 3 to 4 times more than usual for potential threats.
3. Super Cyclone AMPHAN
In May 2020, a super cyclone named ‘Amphan’ developed in the Bay of Bengal. It wreaked havoc in mainly eastern India, including Odisha and West Bengal.
The government deployed 20 NDRF teams to the coastal areas. The teams worked all day and night to restore normalcy in the affected areas. Because of their efforts, about 360 km of roads were cleared, and 30 electric poles and 515 uprooted trees were removed in record time.
They also helped the state government of West Bengal and Odisha with the mass evacuation of 8.1 lakh and 2.37 lakh people, respectively, to safer places.
Along with them, several NGOs in the country also came forward and worked tirelessly to reach clean drinking water and dry food to the marooned people in both states. They visited the most affected places and entered the interiors by boats to reach the relief.
Can you remember any other calamities when the humanitarian workers of India saved many? Let us know in the comments below!
