The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : President to visit Nagapattinam

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 29, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

President to visit Nagapattinam

V. Jayanth

Main hurdle appears to be land for house construction President will look at all aspects — housing, education, orphaned children, fishing and farming.

CHENNAI: When President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam visits Nagapattinam on Thursday, he will get a first-hand knowledge of the rehabilitation and reconstruction work going on in this tsunami-ravaged district.

Though it is six months since the tsunami struck the coast, the President, who wanted to take a look at the devastation , decided to put it off so that the immediate relief work was not affected by his visit. Now that things have settled down and the Tamil Nadu Government is going full steam on the permanent rehabilitation measures, Dr. Kalam would get a clear picture of the reconstruction programme.

According to the programme drawn up for Dr. Kalam , he will interact with school children , children orphaned by the tsunami, fisher folk who lost everything in the giant waves, farmers affected by the salinity in their lands and women Self-Help Groups. In addition, Dr. Kalam will visit some of the worst affected villages such as Akkaraipettai and Keechankuppam and look at temporary shelters and a couple of permanent housing projects taking shape in the area.

Dr. Kalam, who is scheduled to arrive at Tiruchi on Wednesday night, will spend Thursday in Nagapattinam district and stay on for the night. He will also participate in the centenary celebrations of the National Higher Secondary School in Nagapattinam, besides paying a visit to a temple, the Vellankanni Church and the Nagore dargah.

While drawing up his programme, the organisers have also provided for a visit to the Rural Knowledge Centre jointly set up by the Tata Research Foundation and the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation.

Nagapattinam was the worst affected along the eastern coast, but aid and assistance have been pouring in from the beginning. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton chose to visit this coastal town as the U.S. Secretary-General's special envoy on tsunami reconstruction. Dr. Kalam will get a detailed briefing from the top State officials and the district administration before he begins his tour of the affected areas.

Relief Commissioner R. Santhanam and Nagapattinam Collector J. Radhakrishnan will be at hand to explain to him the relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction works.

The main hurdle now appears to be land for the construction of permanent housing, especially in areas where whole villages have been wiped out.

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