By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Shamli: A Delhi-based students’ organization Jamia Students’ Solidarity Forum (JSSF) made a day long visit to the relief camps of Malakpur, Nurpur-Furqan, Sunaiti, Beepur-Hatia, Bhura, Kanaiti and Kandhla with the relief of warm blankets, clothes and toys for children.
Several organisations and NGOs visiting the camps in Shamli district of Western Uttar Pradesh where over 15000 victims of Muzaffarnagar riots are helplessly living and putting up with intense cold weather and an equally cold gesture by the state government.
JSSF is the first and only student organization to have visited these camps with humanitarian relief so far. A total of 700 blankets were distributed to the riot-victims of Beepur-Hatia, Bhura, Kanaiti and Kandhla. These camps are in the interior areas of Shamli and due to poor connectivity have failed to attract relief organizers attention.
“We have decided to keep visiting all those camps which have neither received any help from any organization nor from the state government,” said Ikshula Arora, Joint Secretary of the student forum.
JSSF first visited the graves of 16 infants in the Malakpur camp which horrifyingly tell the tale of absolute absence of any medical aid from the government. Infuriated by the pretentious ignorance of the Director-General (U.P.) of Heath A.S. Rathore over these deaths and the question of regular medical aid the student forum intensely grilled him for hours over the scarcity of medical supplies and other relief aid which ultimately led to the demise of infants in the camps.
“What stops you from admitting and taking responsibility of these deaths?” asked JSSF General Secretary Areeb Rizvi and warned him of taking strict legal action if immediate step were not taken to safeguard the victims from ill-weather.
The apocalyptic reflection of Muzaffarnagar communal violence was also mirrored by the Nurpur-Furqan camp also which is about a km away from Malakpur. The moment JSSF team, along with TCN, visited the second camp in Shamli, refugees poured out their hearts in registering their complaints about the superficial treatment of riot victims.
“No government medical team has visited us in the last 4 months which caused the deaths of infants here,” said a refugee. The student group listened to their problems attentively and assured them of continuity of help on their part.
Further indescribable was the situation of Sunaiti camp where JSSF accompanied Dr. Rathore, who seemed in a hurry to leave the camp site by only asking if they get medicines or not. But JSSF encouraged them to speak on the number of deaths in the camp they came out with jolting figures of six deaths of infants which Dr. Rathore would perhaps never have tried to know about.
A swarm of weeping mothers began to share the utterly disturbing experiences they have had in the last three months since the riots began and left nearly 72,000 Muslims homeless.
However, since camps like Malakpur, Nurpur-Furqan and Sunaiti are comparably better receivers of aid as they are situated on main highways with easy accessibility due to moth roads, it were the camps in deep villages which were devoid of even the help which camps like Malakpur have received.
By the time JSSF team reached Beepur Hatia camp the road to which is muddy is bumpy, it had already become dark. “Nobody has come here with such an aid,” said an aid receiver. 300 blankets were distributed at Beepur Hatia, 200 at Bhora and another 200 at Kanaiti and Kandhla.
“What was commendable that we collected money for relief on a very short notice and after hearing about the death of infants and I think wonder that if one call for humanitarian aid can be so successful than what possibly we could do if more and more people can donate for the victims,” said JSSF President Asad Ashraf.
“But it is time to look beyond only charity and engage ourselves in wider political debates and legal endeavours to secure justice for the riot affected people,” he added while speaking to TCN.
(Photos credit : Talha Bin Ehtesham.)