BENGALURU: The disaster in Chennai is a consequence of poor urban planning, many observed on Facebook and Twitter on Thursday.
Hashtags such as #chennairainhelp, #helpchennai, #chennaifloods, #BangaloreForChennai received support from people in Bengaluru.
Initiatives to provide assistance for Chennai were actively promoted, and numbers and messages retweeted. Facebook groups came into existence to coordinate relief efforts. Volunteers in various parts of Bengaluru appealed for help, and collected blankets, sanitary napkins, and even power banks to help flood victims.
Thanks to such efforts, many vehicles are leaving for Chennai with essential supplies in the next two days.
An FM radio station set up collection points at 20 locations across Bengaluru. A financial services website (wealthy.in) used the Twitter handle @roadtowealthy to collect food items from offices in HSR Layout and Koramangala. Civic groups and start-ups extended their support to similar campaigns.
Wake-up Call
How poor urban planning left Chennai devastated was among the issues discussed online on Thursday.
Facebook user Gowri Orunganti wrote: “Today’s Chennai is tomorrows’s reality of Bangalore. Improper urban planning, mindless infrastructure, buildings, apartments mushrooming anywhere... This is a wake up call. None shall be spared ... Nature’s Fury.”
Twitter user NT, with the handle @naveentan, posted: “Chennai floods, Delhi smog, Bangalore breaking down. Policies speeding urbanisation. We need a planning & design rethink.”