National 7 (Spotlight Weekly)

Mission Rescue And Relief

Along with fighting terrorism, security forces rescue hundreds of natural-disaster victims

By A CORRESSPONDENT

After a weeklong search and rescue operation, soldiers of the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) completed their mission in Matatirtha village, on the outskirts of the capital. Supported by personnel of Nepal Police, RNA soldiers cleared tons of mud and stones to recover dead bodies.

From Matatirtha to the remote village of Sungdel in Khotang district to Kanda of Makwanpur district, security forces have spent several days rescuing victims of landslide and providing temporary relief and shelter. In Kanda and Sungdel, soldiers could not get food for themselves, but completed their mission.

RNA soldiers in rescue work : Difficult mission

Along with landslide victims, security forces launched rescue operations to provide relief to flood victims of Chitwan, Makwanpur, and many other districts in the Terai. During the mission, the security forces have rescued hundreds of people and built temporary embankments at riversides to protect public property. Even during a mission to save the lives of people, security forces have to defend themselves from Maoist terrorists who can attack them at any time.

Although the soldiers and police are risking their lives to protect innocent people, hardly anyone ponders the hostile situation they face. Unfortunately, no political leader has thanked the disciplined and duty-bound soldiers for undertaking such a difficult mission.

Whenever a natural disaster occurs, the RNA and Nepal Police are the first to join rescue and relief operations along with the local population. Despite their present involvement in the war against terrorism, security forces have put in extraordinary efforts to rescue victims of the natural disaster that rocked the country over the last few weeks.

"In Sungdel village of Khotang district, 400 km east of Kathmandu, and Kanda village of Makwanpur district, adjacent to the capital, security personnel rescued hundreds of people, sometimes going without food," said Lekh Nath Pokharel, section officer at the Ministry of Home Affairs' Department of Narcotics Control and Disaster Management (DNCDM).

In a country with scarce resources and difficult terrain, RNA soldiers are always on alert to protect the people from disasters. According to the DNCDM, natural disaster has affected 46 of the kingdom's 75 districts, leaving at least 316 dead. More than 254 people suffered injuries and 63 people are missing. Figures compiled until Monday show that a total of 48,250 families were affected and 16,920 houses were destroyed in floods and landslides.

Casualty figures and damage estimates may still go higher, since the monsoon is expected to continue until the first week of September. Accordingly, RNA soldiers remain on high alert. Enormous logistical difficulties and physical hardships have not deterred the disciplined soldiers and police from their core mission of saving the people from both natural and manmade disasters.

"The RNA soldiers have been doing a really hard job within their limited capacity and resources," says a retired army general. "The army is fighting a proxy war with Maoist forces and is rescuing people caught in the middle of natural disaster. But politicians and so-called intellectuals continue criticizing them," he says.

The RNA's current activities are in continuation of its long tradition of involvement in rescue and relief work. During the 1993 disaster, the soldiers, together with police and other agencies, had done an admirable job in saving lives and rehabilitating victims. With its small number of helicopters and planes, the RNA is going from the country's east to west to rescue thousands of people and to maintain supply lines for soldiers fighting the Maoists.

The determination and selflessness with which the RNA and Nepal Police are leading rescue and relief operations serve as an inspiration to a society that has been languishing in pain.