Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 18 September 2023
In a gesture of solidarity and concern for the flood-affected residents of Old Pahargaon Telugu Basthi, D. Ayyappan, Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI (M)] Andaman & Nicobar State Organising Committee, led a delegation of party leaders to the stricken area on the evening of September 17, 2023. This visit followed the devastating flash floods that inundated the locality, wreaking havoc on countless households due to torrential rains on September 16, 2023.
The flood waters, unleashed by the relentless downpour, penetrated residential homes in the Old Pahargaon Telugu Basthi area. The affected residents found themselves grappling with the loss of essential items, including clothing, food, educational materials, and students’ uniforms, in addition to substantial damage to furniture and household belongings.
Residents, who have long faced this recurrent calamity, voiced their frustrations to the CPI (M) leaders, attributing the flooding to the overflowing of a small katcha nallah (drainage channel) running through their locality. They lamented that their appeals for the construction of a proper drainage system to replace the inadequate katcha drainage had fallen on deaf ears within the Municipal authorities.
In response to the plight of the residents, Secretary CPI (M) D. Ayyappan assured them that their grievances would be championed with utmost urgency. He pledged to take up their demand for the construction of a robust and efficient drainage system in the area with the Secretary of the Port Blair Municipal Council and other relevant authorities. The primary objective of such action would be to prevent future instances of water logging and safeguard the community from the destructive forces of nature.
Accompanying Secretary Ayyappan during this compassionate visit were prominent CPI (M) leaders SP Kalairajan, PK Khalid, and R. Surendran Pillai, all of whom shared the collective determination to alleviate the suffering of the flood-stricken residents and ensure that their long-standing grievances find resolution.