Author: D V Maheshwari
Publications: The Indian Express,
Mumbai
Dated: February 20, 2001
IF you are a quake-hit person with
no roof over your head and in search of a decent shelter, then the one
set up by the people of Gurudaspur, Punjab, at the port-town of Gandhidham
under the supervision of film actor Vinod Khanna is not a bad place to
live in.
"We have erected 200 double large
tents to provide shelter to 180 families who have lost their house in the
Republic Day quake and have started registering names of accommodation
seekers," Khanna told The Indian Express recently.
The tents have been pitched in an
orderly manner on three to four acres of municipal land in the heart of
the port-town.
The boundary is made of tin sheets
and is guarded by security personnel with entry only to genuine visitors.
The tents are of good quality, clean and some of them have cots. A make-shift
modem hospital is coming up in the premises. So is a school and a vocational
training and guidance centre. And Khanna greets every new visitor personally.
"Yadi hame insano ke tarah rakhana
hain aur unhe jald normal banana hain to yeh basic facilities dena jaruri
hain. (If we want humans to live like humans in a decent way and make them
quickly return to normal life, these basic amenities and facilities are
a must)," Khanna, sitting outside his tent said.
The film actor of yesteryears, Khanna
has, in fact been camping at Gandhidham for the past 13 days. "I first
stayed at the KPT guest house at Gopalpuri, but then shifted to one of
the tents in the camp when the guest house was in great demand because
of frequent visits of Union Ministers," Khanna said." The tent you see
behind me is both my office-cum-residence," he added.
Khanna clarifies that he is not
here for distribution of any relief material, but to provide a decent place
to live to the homeless till alternative arrangements are made by the Government.
He said those living in the camp would also be provided food during their
stay here.
When asked why he chose Gandhidham
when there were other worse-affected towns in Kutch, Khanna said he visited
Bhuj, Anjar and Bhachau and found that these towns were being taken care
of while there was little relief work in Gandhidham.
He said many middle-class residents
whose homes had collapsed or been declared unsafe were shy of seeking help
and, therefore, he had decided to set up a camp with all facilities for
them.
Khanna said a number of such people
had already registered their names and they would be given admission in
the next few days when the on going sanitation work was over.
