: I was In Bhuj During the Earthquake. Why I am Telling Stories of Other Survivors Now #IndiaNEWS #Disaster At 8. 46 a. m. on India’s 52nd Republic Day in 2001, Bhuj, in Gujarat was ravaged by an

I was In Bhuj During the Earthquake. Why I am Telling Stories of Other Survivors Now #IndiaNEWS #Disaster
At 8. 46 a. m. on India’s 52nd Republic Day in 2001, Bhuj, in Gujarat was ravaged by an earthquake measuring 7. 7 on the Richter scale.
The visuals of the devastation and destruction are still etched in our minds. The loss of lives, property, and livelihoods was unprecedented, and everything seemed bleak.
This is what the 2001 earthquake did to Bhuj.
Akshat Chaturvedi, who was then 22 years old, was one of the survivors of the earthquake. Since then, he has gone on to rebuild not only his own life, but also that of many others from his community.
Speaking to The Better India, he says, “Kutch is home for me, it’s where I grew up. It’s known to be a disaster-prone area, but nothing prepared any of us for what transpired in 2001. ??? A theatre enthusiast, Akshat was part of a Kutchi film project then, and tells me how he had wrapped up a segment on 25 January 2001 and went to bed late in the evening.
“I remember being jolted awake on the morning of 26 January, and saw everything around me shaking.
Akshat during a community awareness programme.
My first thought was to reach out for my pantheon computer, because I did not want the screen to fall and shatter. I was on the second floor and realised that I had nowhere to run. If I had to die, it would be in that room,??? he says. Akshat recalls how daunting those two minutes were. There was chaos everywhere, and nobody knew what had hit them.
He continues, “People ran out of their homes in whatever state they were – some were taking a bath and ran out stark naked, while others were still in bed when the earthquake struck and tumbled out in night clothes. ???
“After the shaking stopped, I was on the streets trying to see how I could be of help. The images I saw will forever be etched in my memory. The disfigured bodies, the mountains of debris and rubble, and everything around me broken. There was no street that remained intact, and everywhere you looked, people were stranded,??? Akshat says.
Like most children, Akshat too remembers reading about earthquakes when he was little. But until that day, he had never experienced one. “In a matter of minutes, so many of us were all rendered homeless and had to spend the next month camping in tents outside our homes, because we were not sure of when an aftershock would occur,??? he recalls.
‘I’ve lost everything – you go save yourself’
“As I walked the streets, I came to this house where only the door frame was intact, everything inside had collapsed. An elderly lady, in her early 80’s sat with her skull exposed with blood oozing out,??? Akshat says, recalling how distraught the lady looked.

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