Uttarakhand: What the Modi mission was really about

When Narendra Modi left Dehradun in Uttarakhand on Sunday for Pathankot to address a public rally, he may not have realised that his extended stay in the state would spark off a high-decibel controversy over the number of stranded Gujaratis reportedly “rescued” from Uttarakhand. While his party colleagues believe that that the controversy should die a natural death, the fact is Modi’s team of officers from Gujarat, including some senior IAS and IPS officers, are still camping in various parts of the state to facilitate the return of those still stranded in the affected areas. [caption id=“attachment_911071” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Narendra Modi. AFP[/caption] Gujarat Relief commissioner and Principal Secretary PK Parmar, who is mostly stationed in Dehradun or Haridwar, believes that if the weather permits, his mission should be over by this weekend and he should be able to pack his bags by Sunday. Parmar had observed the Kutch earthquake and the devastation it caused from close quarters in 2001. He has handled relief and rescue work in the region as Coordinating officer. So when he was asked to rush to Uttarakhand and put a plan in place ahead of Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s visit on 21 June, he knew what was expected of him. Along with officials trained in disaster management came Gujarat cadre officers belonging to Uttarakhand. Their familiarity with the terrain and the people of the state helped them get down to business quickly. Parmar does not care about the raging political controversy in the media - or at least claims to be unaffected by it. He also completely dissociates his team from the so-called “rescue” act. “Rescue is not our job. It is being done by the army and paramilitary. We are here to see that people from our state get all possible assistance at various transit points and are safely transported back home”, Parmar told Firstpost. Another person engaged in this relief work explained that assistance to pilgrims included facilitating their shift to rescue points and guiding them to the plains and, from there onwards, to base camps in Dehradun or Haridwar before final move to Gujarat. Uttarakhand BJP leaders, who had been part of Modi’s mission for three days in Dehradun, narrate how Modi made skillful use of the party’s organisational machinery at the district, mandal (block) and village levels and put them in touch with Gujarat state officials. Former minister and BJP national secretary TS Rawat said: “Modiji made good use of the party’s organisational spread for relief work. He had planned it very well. Prior to becoming chief minister of Gujarat, as general secretary (organisation), he frequently interacted with workers and knew this state well. He is our leader and his presence here naturally gave new zeal to the workers to channelise their energy in a positive direction. Workers in remote areas were given the numbers of Gujarat government officers who put up some placards and banners at vantage points and stayed connected with them as and when required.” Gujarat Relief Commissioner Parmar says he worked independent of support from any political party. A state BJP leader said that as a government official it was not prudent on his part to talk about taking help from BJP workers. Parmar, however, talks of the support he sought, and got, from a social and spiritual organisation, “Gayatri Parivar”. The organisation has a big presence in Gujarat and a logistical support system in Uttarakhand. The base camp for relief and a medical treatment facility was set up in their premises and the fleet of buses hired by the Gujarat government was also parked here. As for the controversy surrounding the takeoff and landing of political leaders, Rawat says Modi never landed in the hinterland, in areas where rescue and relief operations were on. He was made to land at Joshimutt for refuelling his chopper after an aerial survey. Even BJP President Rajnath Singh, who had earlier visited Uttarakhand, did not land anywhere in the interiors where rescue work was going on. BJP leaders are at pains to explain that the figure of 15,000 persons “rescued” by Modi’s alleged “Rambo act”, published first in The Times of India and picked up by others, including Firstpost, was not a figure given out by the party. Party spokesperson Nirmala Sitaraman said that figure on “rescued Gujaratis” did not come from either Gujarat officials or from party leaders. “Mr Modi had gone there to help, understand and facilitate relief work. Instead of focusing on relief and rehabilitation, some are interested in focusing on numbers, Rambo and such other things. All this is unfortunate.”