You Have Just Returned From A Cyclone – Affected Area. You can find Previous Year Descriptive Essay Topics asked in ICSE board exams.
Descriptive Essay Topic – You Have Just Returned From A Cyclone – Affected Area
Introduction:
Recurrence of natural calamities
- Vivid description of the destruction of life and property
- The relief measures being provided by the government and voluntary agencies
Conclusion:
What more needs to be done
We have made spectacular advancements in science and technology, but time and again nature has shown its supremacy over us. It has reminded us of the supreme power, to whom we are all subservient – ‘God the almighty.’ The wanton destruction it causes through cyclones, hailstorms, avalanches and drought, are also our own undoing.
The thoughtless felling of trees, destruction of forests, green cover on the mountains, and pollution caused by automobiles and industries, result in such calamities striking at regular intervals. They take a heavy toll of life and property and leave behind a trail of destruction. The state of Odisha was struck by a cyclone on the 20th March 2001.
As a freelance reporter for ‘The Daily Times’, I went there to get a first hand account of the tragedy. The extent of destruction and human suffering I saw was unimaginable and beyond description. On my way to Rampur village, which was the worst affected, I saw the roads washed away. The electric and telephone poles littered on the road side, along with massive trees, which blocked the movement of traffic.
The village was enveloped in deadly silence. The eerie silence was broken, by the sobs and wail of children, huddled together in small groups in a makeshift tents. The entire village seemed to have been razed to the ground. Relief workers along with some survivors were shifting the debris, in the hope of finding survivors. On spotting a body in the debris, a painful shriek would occasionally rent the air.
I was relieved to see different agencies actively engaged in the relief operations which were going on in full swing. The Army and the paramilitary forces were busy removing debris from houses and clearing roads. The district administration officials, police and civil defence personnel, were busy in locating and disposing of the bodies, which were highly decomposed. The stench emanating from them, made me put a handkerchief to my nose as I passed a heap of bodies that after identification were being cremated.
There were doctors along with paramedics, providing medical aid to the injured in the temporary relief camps. Looking above 1 saw helicopters airdropping food packets to the marooned people in the village and on the nearby hillocks. It was heartening to see some non-government organisations and voluntary workers setting up make shift kitchens and offering food to their unfortunate brethren.
A week had passed since the tragedy struck this part of Odisha. Though all out relief measure had been made, they were still inadequate. This was for the calamity had left more than ten thousand people dead and millions homeless, in different parts of the coastal region. It is a national calamity, that was promptly declared by the Prime Minister.
It would be a Herculean task to rehabilitate these people and help them pick up their strands of life again. This calls for proper coordination in the relief operations, conducted by different agencies. Besides financial assistance, basic items like food and clothing need to be sent to the Relief Commissioner, for distribution among the hapless people. There is an immediate need to set about building the shattered lives of our unfortunate brethren of Odisha.
Assignment
You have just returned from an earthquake-affected area. Write an account of what you saw and what measures are necessary for the rehabilitation of the people.