Nature's Fury, Shattered Lives
Innal-Lillaahi wa
inna ilayhi raajiuun.
To God we belong and to
Him we shall return.
That’s the defining
thoughts for everyone who face the trial of misfortune and loss.
Tragedy has
come home to people in our land this week. Cyclone Ockhi, the most devastating
cyclonic storm in the northern Indian Ocean region since 2015 has struck many lands in its
tentacles: the coastal regions of Sri Lanka, the South Indian states of Tamil
Nadu and Kerala, the Lakshadweep Islands, and also the Maldives.
Nature’s fury in the form
of bad winds and cyclonic storms has taken away the lives of scores of people; hundreds
of fishermen are missing after the storms, with no information about their
whereabouts and search and rescue operations by the Indian agencies still ongoing
till now. Beyond the shattered lives, possessions and property worth millions
and millions has been destroyed. The damage to electricity transmission lines, agricultural
crops, roads and passageways will continue to leave a chain of negative effects
on the everyday life world of the affected regions and peoples for the months
to come.