UP: Farmers, women, laborers…how Yogi government became the support for the victims of the disaster, know in detail

If there is nature, natural disasters will also occur, but such is the time when governance is tested. Be it a storm or torrential rain or lightning, they bring with them huge devastation. The crop standing in the farmer’s field gets destroyed in a moment. The roof of the house blows off. Children are deprived of their support and sometimes there is such a human loss, the pain of which lasts for years.

In recent days, strong storms, torrential rains and lightning in Uttar Pradesh have once again shown how helpless man is in front of nature. In such a situation, the question that naturally arises in people’s mind is whether anyone is listening to their pain? Anyone feeling their pain?

Message given through actions, not words

Yogi government once again answered this question not with words but with deeds. The sensitivity of the government not only soothed the pain of the people but also boosted their self-confidence. Relief within 24 hours, quick assistance in the districts and ministers reaching out to the victims on the instructions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, this was the face of a system that understands its responsibilities in times of crisis.

There is no opportunity in disaster, service in disaster is the feeling that makes any government a people’s rule. Uttar Pradesh is a huge state. Lakhs of farmers, thousands of villages. Keeping the administrative system active and sensitive in this expansion is not an easy task. But when the political will is strong, when the resolve of the leadership is clear, then the system also moves in the same direction. This is why relief was not only announced but also distributed. The officers did not sit in the offices, they came out into the field. This is a sign of positive change in the administrative culture, which has been seen only in the last nine years of the Yogi government’s tenure.

The government makes its feelings clear towards the people through symbols. The Chief Minister being active in any disaster, taking feedback about the loss from the officials and distributing relief funds within 24 hours along with immediate rescue operations, this is the human aspect which seems to share in the pain and suffering of the people. In-charge ministers and administrative officers reaching the spot in all the affected districts, distributing relief funds and meeting the bereaved families and consoling them is a part of this aspect.

When a minister sits in front of an aggrieved farmer and looks into his eyes, holds his hand and says that the government is with you, it is not just a political programme. That is the establishment of a human relationship. It is the rebuilding of the trust that was shattered by the disaster.

Support in the suffering of farmers

When a storm crushes a farmer’s standing crop, or when lightning casts darkness into a labourer’s house, he needs immediate help, not government benefits that come months later. This initiative of the Yogi government has given a message to the farmers that their plight reaches the corridors of power and there it is also taken into consideration. This is not a small matter. After years of neglect, when the farmer feels that he is being taken care of, the strength to stand up again awakens within him. Providing relief in disaster is not only a matter of compassion, it is also the constitutional responsibility of the government.

It is the responsibility of the state to keep its citizens as safe as possible from natural disasters and to help in compensating them if any damage occurs. But when this responsibility is not just an administrative responsibility but comes with human compassion, then that relief is no longer just a sum of money. She becomes the touch of intimacy that brings strength back into a broken man. Disaster is not only natural, it is also social and psychological. When a family suddenly loses everything, their suffering is not just physical.

In today’s modern era, efforts have been made to reduce the damage caused by natural disasters through technology, but these cannot be said to be sufficient. It is certain that great success has been achieved in alerting people. People are getting timely warnings of bad weather issued by the Meteorological Department. In Uttar Pradesh, 34 crore 64 lakh red and orange warning messages have been sent to the general public through the Sachet portal.

Compensation to farmers in case of crop damage

Compensation is also being given to farmers in case of crop damage of more than 33 percent. There is also a provision to provide assistance up to Rs 18 thousand per hectare for removing silt and debris accumulated in the fields due to excessive rainfall. This will help the affected farmers to start farming again. There is a provision of assistance up to Rs 37,500 on the death of milch animals like cows and buffaloes. All these decisions prove to be helpful in reducing people’s pain and suffering and helping them start their lives afresh.

In this hour of crisis, Yogi government has increased the support of the people. It has been assured that the government is not unaware of the pain and suffering of the people. This support is the biggest asset in a disaster. The belief that we are not alone. There is a government behind us which takes care of us. She sees our tears. Which responds with action, not just promises. It compensates for the losses caused by natural disasters both mentally and financially. This shows that if there is political resolve and the administrative machinery is given the right direction, relief can actually reach the victims.

(The author Digvijay Singh is Assistant Professor at Delhi University and Founder/Director of House of Political Empowerment Research and Innovation Foundation.)