Cyclone Gaja taught us humanity is still alive, say residents of Dalit colony in TN's Nagapattinam

Three houses in the coastal hamlet of Kodiyakkarai crumbled completely, while several others were damaged.
Pakkiri, a resident of Dalit colony in Kodiyakkarai, in front of his rebuilt hut after cyclone Gaja destroyed his house last year | MK Ashok Kumar
Pakkiri, a resident of Dalit colony in Kodiyakkarai, in front of his rebuilt hut after cyclone Gaja destroyed his house last year | MK Ashok Kumar

NAGAPATTINAM: Residents of a Dalit colony in Kodiyakkarai shudder while recounting the devastation caused by Cyclone Gaja. Three houses in this coastal hamlet crumbled completely, while several others were damaged. A newly-built hut stands at the entrance of the village, where 15-year-old Vijaya Krishnan is busy preparing for Class-X Board Examination. 

N Pothiyappan, his father, is a fishing labourer. His mother Kamatchi is also a daily wage labourer, and his siter Mahalakshmi studies second-year in college. On the night when Gaja made landfall, the family moved to their relative’s home in the next street. They knew their old hut would not withstand the wind. 

"We knew we would not be safe here. Even as we moved, I knew the hut was going to be damaged. But the next day, I was shocked to see it fully destroyed. There was nothing left. The wind had taken with it every thing. The next few days were traumatic as we were clueless of how to rebuild our lives," says Pothiyappan.

Pothiyappan says his entire family did not eat the next day. “There was no mobile phones. No power. The only road leading to Kodiyakkarai from Vedaranyam was blocked by trees uprooted. The following day, volunteers managed to reach our village with some biscuits and candles.” 

Relief materials kept trickling in after that. “Volunteers brought construction materials, coir, sheets, bamboo... With those materials, we rebuilt our hut. All that we own now, all the things you see in my hut are donated by volunteers. The mosquito net, the battery lights, sleeping mats... everything. We don’t even know their names.”

Apart from disaster, Gaja brought with it valuable life lessons. “Now, I strongly feel humanity is still alive in this world,” says Pothiyappan. “Even the bulb under which my son prepares for his exams, was donated.” Pakkiri and Subulakshmi Mahalingam also rebuilt their huts with donated materials.       

Last November, Express had written how Pakkiri was suffering with his two-year-old daughter after the disaster. Now, his family lives in the new hut. “I have been living in this land for three decades, but I have no Patta. I hope officials help me with the process,” says Pakkiri.  “I still remember the person who gave me candles and mosquito coils two days after disaster, when we had lost everything. “I will never forget him. I want to thank him now, but I do not know where to look for him,” says Thangadurai.  

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