Unprepared, as always

‘Daivi prakop’ is too naïve and fatalistic to denote disasters often resulting from anthropogenic causes.

That the monsoon would return with deluge and destruction was a foregone conclusion. Yet there continues to be utter disregard for lives and property after years, even decades, of knowing the dangers of the monsoon. Altogether 24 people have reportedly been killed in flooding and landslide incidents across the country this monsoon, while hundreds have been displaced. In what will be a relatively sparse monsoon in the midst of El Nino , there is no complaining about the benevolence of the rain gods. But the deaths and destruction the floods and landslides have brought in the past few weeks as incessant rains have swelled up the rivers and weakened the mountains are a big cause for concern. As per the Ministry of Home Affairs, the nodal authority to track and act on disasters, the past week alone saw 97 landslide incidents across the country.