I still have no shelter or a job, says Mahad hero

There seems to be no end to the suffering of Naveed Duste who was amputated after he injured his leg saving 30 residents when the Tarique Garden building in Mahad collapsed on August 24 last year His house located adjacent to the damaged building was declared dilapidated soon after and the 35yearold and his family of elderly parents wife and a child lost their homeNaveed and his family were staying at his unclersquos house at another location in Mahad but the July damage filled it with muck and floodwater destroyed everything leaving it uninhabitable Now he along with his family is staying at another relativersquos place at Purar village in Goregaon town of Konkan regionlsquoNo roof of my ownrsquoldquoWithout a roof of my own I feel quite helpless at this moment Instead of taking care of my elderly parents my wife and son I am now dependent on my relatives for shelter How long can I stay with them I have no job or shelter todayrdquo Naveed told middayParvez KonchalatHundreds of families in Mahad city were forced to vacate their ancestral homes and even flats after the flood in July this year Most families have been living apart as they had to take shelter at their relativesrsquo houses in Mumbai Mumbra and other parts of KonkanMissing physiotherapyNaveed has also been missing his physiotherapy sessions for the past one month and is concerned ldquoSince I have come here to Mahad I could not do my physiotherapy and have also got an infection in the wound I still wear the prosthetic limb and walk for a few minutes but itrsquos painful My doctor at Apollo hospital had advised me to continue my physiotherapy for at least six months and said that I would gradually get used to the artificial limb I hope I am able to stand on my feet again start earning a living and have a house of my own It has been a testing time for merdquo He got a silicone prosthetic leg in June this yearNot just Naved and his uncle but even his brotherinlaw Parvez Konchalat 45 has also been rendered homeless Parvez even lost his book shop his source of livelihood in the floodParvez and his family of 15 including six children lived at their 100yearold house at a village located at Kondivate Konchali Mohalla in Mahad ldquoThe floodwater current and muck damaged all furniture fixtures and our clothes at home It needs severe repairs as water seeped into mud walls making it weak Another heavy rainfall would lead to its collapserdquo said ParvezNaveeds brotherinlaw who also lost his house and shop in the July floodAt his shop too everything was destroyed ldquoI have lost everything and have no money to even think of starting my business afresh I spend sleepless nights worrying about our future We are still waiting for aid from the state government The damage details were recorded by a few local government employees but havenrsquot got any compensation yet The situation is the same for many familiesrdquo he addedlsquoGood Samaritans helped usrsquoParvez and his family praised the good Samaritans who came with cleaning materials from places like Alibaugh Shrivardhan Karjat Murud etc and helped the affected locals clear the muckldquoThey were god sent They came cleaned up the entire muck cleared the roads and helped to at least make way for people to enter their houses and collect their valuables The houses are not habitable anymore hence most villagers have shifted to their relativersquos housesrdquo said ParvezHis village has 22 houses with a population of over 150 people and approximately 70 per cent of these houses are old and made of mudPeople powerMany volunteers from various NGOs came to support us with food packets utensils bed sheets and clothes Some even provided financial support Moreover many doctors who came from all over the place gave free medical aid and medicines and tetanus injection and fungal cream with antibiotics explained ParvezOther sideDistrict Collector Nidhi Choudhary said ldquoAs per our estimate around 66 houses in Taliye village and few houses from neighbouring areas have been completely damaged along with other houses in neighbouring Wadi However hundreds of other houses from various neighbouring villages and at Wadi too have taken the direct brunt of the landslide and residents from these affected areas are scared to return to their houses and they are in need of a proper rehabilitationrdquo