Mennonite Central Committee

MCC responds to needs along coast of southern India

December 31, 2004

MCC India has approved some $26,200 Cdn./$22,000 U.S. for immediate aid to 1,400 families, approximately 6,000 people, in five villages along the coast of the state of Tamil Nadu in south India.

Residents who sustain themselves by fishing lost homes, relatives and boats.

"Since these families lived right next to the beach they suffered most of the destruction," said Ed Miller, MCC India co-representative.

MCC is providing rice, blankets, traditional Indian clothing, plates, towels, soap and pots to store water in to some 1,000 families in the district of Cuddalore and to some 400 families in the Pulicat lake region in Chennai.

For this effort, MCC is working through a long-time MCC partner, Social Unit for Community Health and Improvement (SUCHI). SUCHI is collaborating with other organizations in south-central India to respond to villages inundated by giant walls of water.

Materials will be immediately purchased locally and moved to the village for distribution. MCC India anticipates sending several staff members from Kolkata (Calcutta) to assist in the initial distribution and follow-up work. As staff gather additional information, MCC may be further involved in these five villages, Miller says.