2001 DROUGHT
OF GUJARAT
Category |
: |
Drought. |
Account |
: |
Nature had dealt Gujarat a double blow
this year. First it was the continuing drought, then
the earthquake. For the third consecutive year, almost
all parts of Saurashtra and north Gujarat faced severe
water scarcity. Temperatures were soaring above 40 degrees
centigrade. |
Area affected |
: |
23 districts out of 25 were affected.
Many of the 13,133 villages declared 'drought affected'
also figure on the list of 7,688 villages declared 'quake
affected'. |
Affected |
: |
30 million people and 13 million cattle. |
Water Crisis |
: |
The government laboured hard to provide
water from the River Narmada in certain areas. Elsewhere,
pipelines, water tankers and even trains were used to
try and deliver water to every drought-affected zone. |
Crop |
: |
1.3 million hectares of standing crop
were affected. |
|
HELP BY BAPS ORGANISATION
|
|
Centres
|
:
|
BAPS centres in Gondal, Dahod, Sarangpur, Amdavad,
Bodeli, were involved with relief work and organising
cattle camps.
|
|
Area helped
|
:
|
The districts of Kutch, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Dahod,
Panchmahal, Vadodara, Amreli, Bhavnagar, Amdavad,
Sabarkantha and Vadodara.
|
|
Cattle Care
|
:
|
10,000 heads of cattle were cared for by BAPS.
|
During a time when
Gujarat was afflicted by a severe drought, an earthquake
measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale struck the state. BAPS
poured all its energies and resources into helping thousands
of earthquake victims. However, it did not forget the plight
of millions of cattle and domestic livestock affected by
the drought. To save the cattle from dying, BAPS opened
5 cattle camps at the BAPS centres in Gondal, Dahod, Sarangpur,
Raisan and Bodeli. The cattle camps sustained and nourished
over 10,000 cattle until the famine ended.
No. |
BAPS Cattle
Camp |
Inaugurated |
Details |
1 |
Gondal |
21 Jan. 2001 |
The first BAPS cattle camp
was inaugurated by the Finance Minister of Gujarat: Vajubhai
Vala. Cattle from Rajkot, Kutch & Jamnagar were cared
for here. |
2 |
Dahod |
07 Feb. 2001 |
The camp cared for cattle
from the districts of Dahod, Panchmahal and Vadodara. |
3 |
Sarangpur |
21 Feb. 2001 |
The camp cared for cattle
from the districts of Amreli, Bhavnagar and Amdavad. |
4 |
Raisan (Amdavad) |
08 Mar. 2001 |
The camp was inaugurated
by Pramukh Swami Maharaj and Shri Keshubhai Patel, Chief
Minister of Gujarat. It cared for cattle from the district
of Sabarkantha. |
5 |
Bodeli |
26 Mar. 2001 |
The camp cared for cattle
from the districts of Dahod and Vadodara |
|
Total |
|
Over 10,000 cattle
heads were cared for by BAPS. |
Unique aspects of BAPS Cattle Camps:
Cattle camps in Gondal, Sarangpur, Dahod,
Raisan and Bodeli had the following unique attributes:
• Spacious ground
to accommodate animals.
• Disinfected tanks
to store drinking water.
• Sheds with nets
to let in natural breeze.
• Troughs made of
stone.
• Platforms made of
stone for stacking stocks of grass.
• Sufficient water
supply.
• Grass and cattle-feed
in sufficient quantities.
• A well-equipped
veterinary hospital with expert doctors.
• Enough space for
cattle to move around.
• Trained volunteers
to keep the cattle and surroundings clean.
• Trained staff to
carefully unload cattle and to note their branding so that
they can be returned to their rightful owners once the rains
set in.
BUTTERMILK DISTRIBUTION
The BAPS centre in Gondal also distributed buttermilk to drought-affected
victims living in remote villages in the districts of Jamnagar
and Rajkot.
OPINIONS
"Every work
of Pramukh Swami Maharaj is extraordinary. And I welcome
and congratulate the opening of this wonderful cattle camp
here today. It is not a cattle camp but a cattle school.
I would also like to congratulate Pramukh Swami for the
BAPS's relief services in the earthquake disaster in Bhuj
and Saurashtra."
Keshubhai Patel , Chief Minister
of Gujarat
"Whenever our country or
state is affected by natural calamities, Pramukh Swami Maharaj
has always organised relief work according to the needs of
society and engaged with full faith the sadhus and volunteers
of the Sanstha. The Bochasanwasi Shree Akshar Purushottam
Swaminarayan Sanstha is the biggest university for social
service in society."
Vajubhai Vala, Finance Minister
of Gujarat
"The earthquake was an unexpected
happening. The government and NGOs have performed a wonderful
task in the midst of several limitations. But amongst all
NGOs, BAPS is the best. On seeing this cattle camp I can
confidently say that this is an ideal camp. The BAPS has
shown what an ideal cattle camp should be like."
Bharatbhai
Pandya , MLA for Dhanduka
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