The month of August sets up a fervour of patriotism in almost every part of India. This year was no different as India geared up to celebrate the 70th anniversary of its independence. However, the fervour did not last for too long. What should have been a month full of independence day celebrations turned into a month of nightmares.
Streets, that should have been full of march pasts, were hidden behind a layer of flood water. The air, that should have carried the essence of independence, smelled of blood and only blood. Soldiers, who should have been hoisting the tricolour, were covered by it in a coffin. Kids, who could have made a glorious future for India, had now become a past.
A few incidents could have been avoided while a few others left almost everyone helpless. In either case, the sorrow of losing a human life remained the same. To spare a thought for every single one who lost their life in an unfortunate manner, here is a list of 7 tragic incidents that left almost everyone in India high and dry.
1. Death Of Soldiers In J & K
A terrorist attack in J & K on last saturday claimed the lives of 8 security men. It wasn’t just the only loss we suffered in the valley. Earlier, on 3rd of August, two army men, including a major, were martyred during an encounter with terrorists in South Kashmir. Proper deployment of the troops could have been enough to avoid the grave losses suffered.
2. Train Derailments
Just when we thought that Indian Railways is growing in the right direction, train derailments introduced us to the ugly reality. The month started off with the derailment of Kalinga Utkal express on August 19 leaving at least 23 dead as per the official claims. The situation just got worse with 3 more accidents taking place in a span of just 11 days. A Mumbai bound local train on August 25, Kaifiyat express on August 23, and Nagpur-Mumbai Duronto express on August 29 kept hitting the Indian Railways hard on their face. The number of fatalities became too much to be ignored as Suresh Prabhu, one of the bright gems of NDA government, hinted at his resignation.
3. Haryana Riots
The conviction of a self-proclaimed god-man on 25 August triggered riots in Haryana. 32 died in the city of Panchkula with police standing alongside as mere witnesses. The government failed to control a bunch of erring followers who were in support of a rapist. After hours of violence that left a curfew in 10 districts of Punjab, police resorted to open firing that finally brought an end to the ugly protests. But before that, the angry mob tried to burn down two railway stations in Punjab’s Malout and Malsa towns. Vehicles including media OB vans were set ablaze in clusters. The tension prevailed in all the nearby areas until the special CBI court in Panchkula announced Gurmeet Singh a 10 year imprisonment on 28 August.
4. Gorakhpur Tragedy
The most heart breaking incident of the year that left around 70 children dead too happened due to a case of government negligence. Disruption in the supply of oxygen to the hospital is something that is usually never heard of. But it actually happened between 7-11 August as the BJP led state government failed to clear the bills despite constant warnings given by the suppliers. The tragedy was further marred by a blame game that completely overshadowed the pain and sufferings of the ones involved. It didn’t just stop there, another 42 children died in a span of 48 hours after just three weeks on 29-30 August. Of the 1250 deaths reported since January 2017, the highest (290) have occurred in the month of August.
5. Petrol Price Hikes
Petrol prices have started closing in on the highest values they’ve ever attained by getting a small increase almost every other day. As of now, the prices of petrol in Delhi is Rs 69.04/litre in Delhi, Rs 71.78 in Chennai, Rs 72.02/litre in Kolkatta, Rs 78.38/litre in Mumbai, and Rs 79.8/litre in Nagpur. With the international crude oil prices still very much under control, the question arises as to why these price hikes have been made to dampen our day-to-day life.
6. Mumbai Rains
Heavy rains triggered a flood like situation in the heart of India to make the already so tragic month of August even worse. Mumbai received a rainfall of 331.4 mm on Tuesday, August 29, heaviest since 26 July 2005 when Mumbai was hit by the worst floods of all time. What made the situation even worse was the failure of BMC to provide proper drainage. The Uddhav Thackarey led Shiv Sena who control the civic body of Mumbai denied accepting the blame and instead said they worked fine with the relief work as well.
7. Bihar Floods
The northern half of Bihar witnessed an unforgettable downpour that left 19 districts flooded with around 1.7 crore people affected. The flood water kept coming in from 12-20 August. The death toll has so far spiked up to 514. East Central Railway that functions in Bihar suffered a reported loss of Rs 47 crore, Rs 27 crore due to damage to railway property, and Rs 20 crore due to the cancellation of trains.
Despite all this, the love for our country never seized and neither did the spirit of humanity. When the government failed to provide the relief work, the Mumbaikars joined hands and hosted strangers at their home for dinners. The picture below shows not just the government but the nature too can’t stop we Indians from loving our homeland.
We wish to never see another August like this again and even if we do we hope to stand up for each other as we so often do and keep humanity above everything else in the times of crisis to come.