Red Cross team rushes to Sulgeri village, distributes relief materials

Karwar, July 28, 2021: Heavy downpour is nothing new to the people of Sulgeri, the remote village situated on the Karwar-Joida border. For generations, they have witnessed heavy rain and flood. But this year nature’s fury was beyond imagination.

While the heavy rain causes floods every year and raises the water level of the rivers, this time it has done unimaginable damage. The rain has resulted in landslide. It has not just disconnected the village but has flooded the fertile agricultural land with sand and trees. The rivulet has also changed its course!

The houses here are filled with 2 feet of slush. Rice, sugar, and other food items are spoilt. The villagers here tried to get help but in vain. Finally one of the villagers called activist Madhav Nayak who brought it to the notice of the Deputy Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner.

Nayak, who heads the Red Cross Disaster Management unit of Uttara Kannada got a phone call from Ankita, a villager, about the disaster. Nayak and his team narrated the situation to the Deputy Commissioner, who is the district head of Red Cross, and immediately rushed to the village.

“We did not know the exact situation in the village. But we had realized that the situation is very serious there. On Monday I along with my team comprising four others traveled to Sulgeri, which is about 36 km from Kadra,” Nayak narrated.

“We had seen the village before. But this time when we went we could not identify it. Loads of logs were washed from the nearby forest to the village and tons of sand are deposited on the fertile land,” he said.

The Red Cross team immediately began its work. Though there have been no casualties, the situation of the people living in the village was pathetic.

The Red Cross team handed over utensils kit, bucket, mask, sanitizers, soap, biscuits, and water bottles.
The team comprised Youth Convener Ajay Saukar, Youth president Sachidanand Naik, members Anmol Revank, and Sandeep Revankar.