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Humanitarian Relief Effort Urgent in India

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The most powerful earthquake to hit India in 50 years struck the western state of Gujarat, near the Pakistani border, on Friday January 26th. The earthquake measured 7.9 on the Richter scale and occurred at 8:46 a.m. local time, lasting 45 seconds, flattening buildings in towns and cities. The quake was the largest in magnitude to hit India since August 15, 1950, when a quake measuring 8.5 killed 1,538 people in northeastern Assam state.

The quake was felt 600 miles away in the capital, New Delhi, and as far as 1,200 miles away in Calcutta and coastal Bangladesh. News agencies place the death toll as high as 20,000. The Red Cross has estimated that this number could rise to at least 50,000 with the numbered injured in the tens of thousands. In Pakistan, the earthquake has left 12 people dead and about 100 injured.

The hardest hit was the city of Ahmedabad, population 4.5 million, and the coastal municipality of Bhuj, population 150,000, near the Pakistan border, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The epicenter is reported to have been about 14 miles northeast of Bhuj, where much of the area has been reduced to rubble, with the death toll at 10,000 so far. Water, communications, power, fuel and medical infrastructure have been destroyed or damaged, according to press reports.

The earthquake struck while Indians were beginning celebration of India’s 51st Republic Day, a public holiday commemorating the adoption of the country’s constitution. Since the quake hit, more than 275 aftershocks have been recorded, 20 of them above the 5.0 magnitude.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that 35 million people have been affected by the quake in India. Over 70,000 homes have been damaged, and 200,000 people are homeless.

The situation in India is urgent. Survivors of the devastating quake are in need of food and water, clothing, shelter, medical aid, and protection from disease and the threat of epidemics.

Humanitarian relief has been pouring into the country from around the world. In the United States, several Islamic relief organizations have already sent donations and supplies to help those left homeless and hungry among the ruins. Though relief efforts have been slow to reach survivors, additional humanitarian assistance is needed; more blankets, tents and other supplies. Every Muslim should do their part to help the quake victims and ease their suffering, whether it be through financial means or prayers.