Haiti quake

Just a few days back,tiny nation by the name of Haiti,situated in the carribeans,experienced an earthquake in excess of 7.0 magnitude and a happy,laid-back nation was reduced to rubble in a matter of minutes.Though exact number of casualities are not know,some estimates put it in excess of 5,00,000.A loss of this magnitude underscores the fraility of humankind in face of nature's fury.Whenever man thinks he has mastered his fate,the nature strikes back with all its fury.The more we play with environment,greater is the risk of impending doom.Doomsday was not in some distant future but on that very day when it was struck with the killer earthquake.
Modern technology claims to make earthquake-resistant buildings but one shudders to imagine the havoc such an event may cause in highly seismic-prone region of India.We are least prepared to handle such a disaster and prefer to remain in a state of denial.The himalayan belt has already experienced many earthquakes in past and is predicted to experience many more in future,with even Delhi being in this fault zone but our governments continue to remain in a state of denial.We always think that this is happening in some far-away place so we need not be bothered but tragedies often come unannounced.In the past,such upheavels were thought to be God,s stern messages and i believe that this holds true even to this day.
As a first step,illegal mining and de-forestation must be banned with immediate effect.Highly trained health teams specializing in helping victims of natural disasters should be formed.Government must pay more attention to adherence of norms for structural safety of buildings to withstand major earthquakes.People must be informed of dos- and donts- by mass media in case of a major earthquake and most importantly,come out of the state of denial.Remember,if it can happen in Haiti,it can happen in India too.

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