Barmer floods: The trauma lives on

Barmer:

Ahead of Environment Day on June 5, NDTV takes a look at the dangers of climate change through the stories of children whose lives have been affected.

In Rajasthan's Barmer, eight-year-old Bashir Abra and his father Abdul Karim often walk up a sand dune to have a view of the area.

"I feel scared of the water because the water took my mother away," Bashir said.

No one could have imagined that Barmer, a vast part of the Thar desert, was swallowed up by water. In August 2006, flash floods hit western Rajasthan and a desert region that gets 200 mm rainfall in a year, received 601 mm of water which turned it into a sea.

Eyes that had always scanned the sky for clouds praying for rain, watched in disbelief and fear as homes, families and villages were swept away.

The rising water drowned Bashir's mother, his three sisters, one younger brother, his grandmother and cousins. In her final moments, Bashir's mother threw him at his father, pleading him to save at least one child. Father and son clung to a Khejri tree for 13 hours.

The tree, which is synonymous with life in the desert, became their lifeline. That was two years ago. Since then, Bashir's only expression is a glazed smile. It's deceptive but can't hide the trauma, which expresses itself in the way that he clings to his father. Bashir and his father now live in new Malba -- one of many resettled colonies in this region.
 
Normal life for Bashir now means school. But signs of trauma are visible here too.

A teacher says once a bright student Bashir now has learning problems. He is unable to concentrate and his eyes are constantly searching empty spaces.

The one time Bashir comes alive is when he and his father return to their old mosque. Faith, religion and God are the only solace when nature's fury strikes.

How or why did floods come to this desert land is still being debated, but one thing is sure -- climate scientists have warned that the frequency of extreme weather events are expected to increase due to global warming.

But for Bashir and his father, life will never be the same. In their own ways, they are both struggling to cope with their loss with the flood that came out of nowhere and changed their world forever.