Kerala floods, a man-made disaster

In late July 2018, severe flooding affected Kerala due to unusually high rainfall during the monsoon season. Kerala's worst floods in nearly a century affected all 14 districts placed on high alert. Report as on 21 Aug 2018 ... No. of Villages Affected:776 | Population Affected:54,11,712 | Lives lost: 373 | Missing: 32 | Evacuated:2,80,679 (7,500 in last 24 Hrs) | Relief Camps:5,645 | Inmates in Relief Camps: 12,47,496. The flooding has affected hundreds of villages, destroyed about 10,000 km of roads and thousands of homes have been damaged or destroyed. The total loss is estimated at about ₹20,000 crores.

• The rainfall on Aug 8, 2018 was 310 mm. Kerala has 41 rivers flowing into the Arabian Sea, and 80 of its dams are now said to be open after being overwhelmed.
• The overflow gates of the Idukki Dam were opened after a gap of 26 years. For the first time in history all five overflow gates of the Idukki Dam were opened. For the first time in the state's history, 35 of its 42 dams have been opened, flooding local low-lying areas.
• Around 42 teams from the Indian Army and the Navy, along with over 20 helicopters and hundreds of boats, were involved in rescue operations across the state. The Coast Guard is working in 28 locations and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed 39 teams so far. The NDRF has rescued over 4,000 people, while the Navy has rescued 550. 
• As all the districts in the state have been affected by flood, there have been demands to declare it a "national calamity" but the centre has declared the floods a “calamity of severe nature.”
• Heavy rains have caused severe landslides and have left the hilly districts isolated. Between June 1, 2018 and August 17, 2018, Kerala received 2226 mm rain fall against normal of 1620 mm i.e. 41% excess.
• Kerala state government has sought a special package of ₹2,600 crore for relief and rehabilitation. While HM Rajnath Singh has announced immediate relief of ₹100 crores during his aerial survey, PM Modi in his aerial survey has announced additional ₹500 crores. Very meager by any standards.

  

• UAE, where thousands of expatriates from Kerala work, has promised assistance to ₹700 crore, which is rejected by centre citing UPA policy of 2004. The Thailand’s offer of assistance and aid was also rejected. This international disaster relief policy is only limited to foreign governments with conditional aids. Since 2004, India has refused relief aid from Russia, United States and Japan for disasters across Uttarakhand and Kashmir.
• On August 15, Cochin International Airport, India's fourth busiest airport suspended all operations until 26 August, following runway flooding.
• Over 80% of the state has been cut off from power supply. Schools in all 14 districts of Kerala have been closed and some districts have banned tourists, citing safety concerns.
• More than 300 boats are also involved in rescue operations.
• Life and general insurance companies expect deluge of claims of about ₹500 crores, it is less than 3% of the total loss.
• Insurers are also expect big claim for Kochi airport, which has an insurance cover of ₹2,500 crore. (Claims from the 2015 Chennai floods were over ₹5,000 crore, followed by the Mumbai floods of 2005 over ₹4,000 crore and the J&K and Uttarakhand floods, at about ₹2,000 crore each).
• The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP), also known as the Gadgil Committee, headed by Madhav Gadgil, had suggested that 140,000 kilometres of the Western Ghats be classified in three zones and recommended strong restrictions on mining, quarrying, use of land for non forest purposes, construction of high rises etc. The report submitted in 2011 was rejected by the Kerala government and none of its recommendations were adopted. Madhav Gadgil says that the recent floods and landslides in Kerala was a "man-made calamity" and irresponsible environmental policy is to be blamed for. 
• There were allegations that the shutters of 34 dams were opened in one go. The unplanned opening of sluice gates of the several dams caused most submergence. CM Vijayan stated that Idamalayar and Idukki dams were opened after proper inspection and deliberation with officials. Vijayan said “Nobody could’ve foreseen this but still warnings were given and evacuations were done, but torrential rains were beyond any control."
• Kesari, a weekly affiliated with RSS published an editorial on its website criticising the central government appeared to be acting vengefully towards Kerala and was not responding with the political decency shown by Vijayan. Later it was taken off claiming its website was hacked.
• Kerala's flood relief fund drive is getting overwhelming response from all kind hearts across the world and donations have crossed ₹309 Crore on Aug 22, 2018.
• As people left camps, many found mud and slush up to six feet level in front of their houses. All possessions have been lost, and people have to start afresh in obtaining their books, certificates, Aadhaar card, ration card etc. More important is the drinking water, electricity supply, managing contagious diseases etc.

There is no question that Kerala floods was a man-made disaster and is a result of ecological destruction and lack of protocols and weather forecasting algorithms to manage this type of calamities. While its occurrence could not have been avoided, its impact on life & properties could have been contained. Modi government rejecting unconditional cash aid of ₹700 crores from UAE & significant aid from Thailand willingness and granting meager amounts for relief operations has sent a very wrong message to the people of opposition ruled states. Modi has violated most of the UPA policies and why he preferred to follow this particular policy remains unexplained. For Visakhapatnam 2014 Hudhud cyclone damages, Modi announced ₹1000 crores aid but paid only ₹750 crores. During 2017 Bihar floods, against a request for ₹7,600 crore, the Centre had given ₹1700 crore, including the ₹500 crore initial relief given to the state. Keeping aside Centre-State politics, the government should gracefully accept the assistance for Kerala and junk the 2004 policy or precedent.

Nawaz Sharif ousted by Pakistan's Supreme Court

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with his son Hussain Nawaz

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Friday disqualified Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from holding office for life. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resigned following the judgment despite having reservations on the verdict. Following the judgment, the Pakistan Cabinet stands dissolved. The court also ordered a criminal investigation and trial against Nawaz Sharif and his family.

• The court disqualified him from office over allegations detailed in the Panama Papers. The disqualification was for life, that was the law for the moment.
• The court ruled Sharif  “is not honest … [and] therefore, he is disqualified to be a Member of ”parliament,” and, consequently, the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
• Nawaz Sharif not only served as chairman of the board of a Dubai-based company Capital FZE, he also drew a salary of 10,000 dirhams between Aug 7, 2006 and April 20, 2014 — till nearly a year after assuming office. The sticking point was that Sharif did not declare this income in his nomination papers.
• UAE's labour laws mandate that all employees must receive a salary through a bank account, failing which the firm can be blacklisted and shut down. This technicality proved to be the former prime minister's undoing.
• Where respondent did not disclose his assets, it would amount to furnishing a false declaration on solemn affirmation in violation of the law and he is not honest, the court concluded. Sharif would, therefore, have to go. All five judges concurred.
• Panama Papers documents alleged that three of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s four children—Maryam Safdar, Hasan Nawaz, and Hussain Nawaz Sharif—used shell companies to buy property in London. Nawaz Sharif, whose party was democratically elected in 2013, has denied any wrongdoing.
• A document was purported to be written in February 2006 but court-appointed investigators concluded that it was forged, noting that it used the Calibri font, a Microsoft licensed typeface that was not commercially available at the time.
  

• Sharif was in his third term as prime minister. He previously served from 1990 to 1993, when he was dismissed by the president on corruption charges, and again from 1997 to 1999, when he was ousted in a military coup. This is his third term as prime minister, that ended abruptly by Supreme Court judgment.
• Next general elections are scheduled for 2018.
• None of Pakistan’s 15 prime ministers have completed their full five-year term, victims of military coups, corruption, and, even death.
• Sohail Warraich, a prominent Pakistani journalist remarked “It was a colossal miscalculation. He probably thought they’d take it to the edge and then let him off. He didn’t read the signs.” It was a catastrophic miscalculation.
• Justice Azmat Saeed responded with “we cannot resort to exceptionalism by making a departure from the settled law and inventing a new set of rules merely because Respondent No.1 holds the Office of the Prime Minister. The last time in our legal history, when such a course of action was followed, it had tragic consequences.”
• A barrister opines that the “tragic consequences” were visited not only upon that prime minister but on the nation as a whole and the long-term credibility of the Supreme Court itself. If there was ever a judgement that begs review, this is it.
• Whoever replaces Sharif will have to tackle Pakistan’s worsening ties with the United States, frayed relations with India, and persistent attacks by Islamist militants including the Pakistani Taliban and Islamic State. The economy is benefiting from vast investment from China, but economists are concerned about falling currency reserves and dwindling exports.
• Yet by respecting Supreme Court verdict and resigning as PM, Nawaz Sharif effectively thwarted Army's intervention in political power play.
• With Sharif's exit our problems with Pakistan won't get vanished, rather they would get more complicated. With no aid from USA, internal economy in doldrums, Pakistan will continue to rely on China for assistance and status quo will continue.

Through the Panama Papers judgement, the balance of power had been tilted in favour of the Supreme Court and the qualification of parliamentarians had been threatened. The parliamentarians, feeling threatened, might react by getting together for a constitutional amendment aimed at curtailing or restricting the scope of powers of Supreme Court under Article 62 of the Constitution.

My View:

Pakistan Supreme Court should be appreciated for enforcing law equally even for a prime minister. Even though the offence is relatively smaller with no loss to exchequer, the law doesn't provide any exceptional treatment to VIP's. This is similar to "Prime Minister jailed for traffic offence". At times it could push the nation into turmoil. Recollect what happened in 1975 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was unseated by Allahabad High Court for a small election offence. It ended up in emergency and political unrest for several years. In a democracy, law must be enforced without discrimination, at any cost without fear of consequences. Kudos to Pakistan Supreme Court for its fearless judgment. Our SC Judges must learn some lessons from our neighbor, whose democracy is far junior to us and relatively immature.