Assam: SSSSO distributed relief materials at Flood Relief Camp in Jengpari Village of Morigaon

Guwahati:   Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations,( SSSSO)  Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh and Sri Sathya Sai Trust, NER set out for a Flood Relief Camp in Jengpari Village of Morigaon District. The relief materials were gathered yesterday itself for ease. Today morning at 8:00AM, all the seva dal members gathered together to load a truck with the 3.7 tonnes (3700 kgs) of relief material. The seva dal was comprised of Mr. Manash Barooah, Bhaskar Kaku Baruah, Kishanu Borah, Krishanu Saharia, Mahesh Das and the president of SSSSO, Mr. Satyen Sarma. The truck was provided by seva dal member, Ravi Sarma.

The team along with the relief material set out for the journey, with a stop at a Petrol Pump near Jayanagar, Six Mile for refuelling. The owner of the station Mr. Santanu Sarmah, inquired about what we were about to do, and when informed about the relief, he refused to charge any money for the refuelling saying that Sai Baba has been his guiding light always, and this was his small contribution to the work that we were about to do. Thus beginning the series of miracles that Baba showered on us today.

The team halted at Jagiroad for a quick tea, when the SP of Morigaon District, Dr. Nanda Singh Barkala called to inform about the daunting weather conditions in his area. The roads were in a terrible condition and the heavy downpour was causing immense trouble. But knowing the progress the team had already made, he said that he’d inform the OC of Bhuragaon Police Station, Mr. J. Nath to look over the matter.

As we contacted Mr. Nath, he was sceptical about the whole plan as the rain would cause a huge impediment. Nonetheless he asked to come to the Bhuragaon Police Station which was 78 kms away from Guwahati. As we neared the station, the road seemes gravelly and harsh, and just then a car filled with people from the press stopped next to us, saying that they would lead us to our destination.

Along with the police personnel and the press team, all of us proceeded to the Ghat. The weather condition was truly unbearable, the rain poured incessantly and we almost had no way out as even the weather forecast said that the heavy rainfall would continue for a long time. But just then, as if Baba was listening to our worries, the rain began to slow down and just in a matter of few minutes, the rain dissipated, leaving behind a bright sun to help us with the day. The joy on everyone’s faces was visible, with a tinge of shock at the sight of this miracle, if not anything else.

After this, the materials from the truck were unloaded onto a boat, and the team along with the others made their way to the Jengpari Village, which took another 1 hour, traveling 4-5 kms downstream. As we reached the village, we were greeted by the Village Headman, and we were given a list of the 422 families from the village to whom we would be providing relief to. The village was in a pitiful condition, with the houses destroyed by the flood, the people being rendered homeless and the sheer lack of food and clean water was heartbreaking. The villagers lined up in a queue and the relief was set forth by around 2PM and was over by 5PM.

The relief team, along with the police personnel and the press team were given the precautionary Gloves, Masks and Head Caps, which were worn throughout the process. All the safety measures were thus taken care of.

Halfway through the relief, a young kid around the age of 10 and 12 came to me with hands laid out to receive the package, and while i was handing it out to him, he spoke to me in a broken voice that i couldn’t register at first, so i bowed down. He whispered that during the lockdown, his mother passed away. I was numb, as i didn’t know what to do. I patted his head affectionately and ruffles his hair, and he swiftly got back to his place. But this is a reality that almost everyone in the village faced during this period.

The entire relief ended on a satisfying note, and one thing that was common in all of us was eyes that were filled with tears, and hearts that was filled with a mixed bag of emotions, ranging from sorrow to satisfaction.

Coming to an end, i would like to quote myself from an answer that i gave to a reporter when asked about my motivation to come to the village, undertaking such high risks. I told him that, “Sai Baba always said Love All, Serve All and Help Ever, Hurt Never. This is the ideology that i follow, and i abide by it, no matter what the situation is.”