All of Basanta Parida's belongings including his house were washed away by the flood
Inghinatti, Ganjam:
A cow and an aluminum vessel - that's all Basanta Parida, a poor farm labourer, can now call his own. His kacha hut and all his belongings were swept away as floods after cyclone Phailin ravaged several villages in North Ganjam district in Odisha.
So intense is his pain and helplessness, that language was no barrier. The first question asked in Hindi and he began crying.
"I have lost everything. Nothing could be saved. For two days, we haven't eaten anything. And we have got no help from the government," Mr Parida lamented in Odiya.
His wife Sunita and two young children have been sitting for over 18 hours where once their hut stood in Inghinatti village, hoping someone will come and help them.
If it's the pangs of hunger and destitution that trouble him, for a few others it's a question of life and death.
Four villages have been marooned in the area as the Baranadi and Lorakhadi rivers spilled over their banks swallowing hundred of acres of land growing rice.
We climb the staircase in another home and see a frail old lady in a thin white saree sleeping on a mat. It's hot and humid but her body shivers. "She has a high fever. No one has reached us still. She is old and needs medical help," her daughter in law Nuoti Raut says.
A little ahead from Raut's house, the family is mourning their dead. Manoj Parida says his 90-year-old grandmother was already ailing and then the bitter cold was way too much for her to bear.
"Once the cyclone passed, we cremated her at a dry spot right opposite our home," he says as his father and wife look on.
Villagers are on the edge feeling angry and let down. "If the media can reach here, then why can't the administration?" Bhagwan Parida asks
"We are sending a team and more ration to the areas. We had informed the army to send a column but for some reason they couldn't reach," Gunjam disctrict collector Krishna Kumar told NDTV.
The flood waters have now receded but fear of water borne diseases are high here as wells could have been contaminated.
So intense is his pain and helplessness, that language was no barrier. The first question asked in Hindi and he began crying.
"I have lost everything. Nothing could be saved. For two days, we haven't eaten anything. And we have got no help from the government," Mr Parida lamented in Odiya.
His wife Sunita and two young children have been sitting for over 18 hours where once their hut stood in Inghinatti village, hoping someone will come and help them.
If it's the pangs of hunger and destitution that trouble him, for a few others it's a question of life and death.
Four villages have been marooned in the area as the Baranadi and Lorakhadi rivers spilled over their banks swallowing hundred of acres of land growing rice.
We climb the staircase in another home and see a frail old lady in a thin white saree sleeping on a mat. It's hot and humid but her body shivers. "She has a high fever. No one has reached us still. She is old and needs medical help," her daughter in law Nuoti Raut says.
A little ahead from Raut's house, the family is mourning their dead. Manoj Parida says his 90-year-old grandmother was already ailing and then the bitter cold was way too much for her to bear.
"Once the cyclone passed, we cremated her at a dry spot right opposite our home," he says as his father and wife look on.
Villagers are on the edge feeling angry and let down. "If the media can reach here, then why can't the administration?" Bhagwan Parida asks
"We are sending a team and more ration to the areas. We had informed the army to send a column but for some reason they couldn't reach," Gunjam disctrict collector Krishna Kumar told NDTV.
The flood waters have now receded but fear of water borne diseases are high here as wells could have been contaminated.
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