Some things are just not funny. And the huge human tragedy that has struck Orissa in the form of a cyclone falls in that category.
The devastation has been horrendous in its magnitude, but the quantum of deaths and the possibility of epidemics just add to the tragedy, that is unparalleled in its dimensions in recent Indian history.
Even while human misery surrounds them, guess what our politicians are doing? What else..politicking like crazy.
The principal Opposition parties in the State, the Biju Janata Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party are busy blaming the incompetence of the ruling Congress Government for not staving off the crisis, as if a cyclone could be abolished by passing an Act in the State Assembly. More than that, Naveen Patnaik, Union Minister, BJD supremo, Manhattan socialite turned Mandalite socialist, Jackie Kennedy's editor and one who has refused to learn his native language despite having been an MP for more than two years, would rather attack Chief Minister Girdhar Gomango than do anything constructive, like pump out a couple of litres of water from Bhubaneshwar.
Not that mridangam player Gomango is blameless. The Congress Government is full of self-serving buffoons who were more interested in infighting than in administering the State or trying to build the infrastructure, that could have minimised the impact of the calamity.
Instead, he too is trying to score brownie ahead of Assembly polls, by passing the buck on to the Centre for not having sanctioned enough money for relief and rehabilitation operations. The State Government's greatest single contribution has been to force the Centre to describe the event as a ``super cyclone''. All that while it was the State's bureaucrats who sat on their asses while countless alerts and warnings came from the Met department about the possible onset of a momentous cyclone. All that the babus will have to suffer through are transfers to new places where they can continue with their slothful ways. As they say, some people can get away with murder.
And what about the Centre? They were doing exactly the same; nothing. Twiddling their thumbs, probably, but nothing more. Other than the fallback of bringing in the Army, nothing. And it took four days and the possibility of a PR coup by Atal Behari Vajpayee that brought about a hike in the relief package announced for the State; though still just over half of that actually required.
We spoke of warnings before, and herein lies the idiocy born of contempt for human welfare and life, especially cheap if found in villages and impoverished coastal districts. The Indian Meteorological Department warned of the cyclone, with estimated wind speeds, 72 whole hours before it hit the east coast.
Those warning were repeated ad nauseam, every hour on the hour.
In 72 hours, preemptive actions could have led to evacuation from the areas considered vulnerable and emergency precautions could have been in place.
However, for some strange reason, not a single Oriya politician or bureaucrat seems to have become a victim of the cyclone among the multitude laid low. Wonder why? hmm…