Kerala Effect

Partial washout due to incessant drizzle

The dark, gloomy weather these days is being attributed to the monsoon mayhem in Kerala. On last count, 324 lives have been lost to floods and landslides there. About 2.85 lakh people from more than 50,000 families have reportedly been rendered homeless and settled in 1,560 relief camps across the state.
Comparatively, we are living in paradise. True, we don’t see much of the sun but we are able to complete our exercises without sweat or panting for breath. In fact, going by Mumbai’s climate at

Gupta (l) practices the 'Shekhawat salute'

this time of the year, the mornings are quite pleasant and breezy. Today though, we faced a partial washout during the exercises due to a persistent drizzle of varying intensity.
Much as all this is manageable, what has become a cause for concern are the muddy patches in the Garden and puddles of stagnant water – areas that can cause an accident, should one not be extra careful. Of even greater concern is the possibility of contracting some water-borne disease and of course, malaria or dengue.
Bijoy Gupta is convinced that the little pools of stagnant water around the Garden are breeding grounds of the “deadly” dengue mosquitoes which have developed a taste for his blood only. He therefore does not wear shorts any longer and comes formally dressed, from top to toe. “You don’t know, the mosquitoes get very active early in the morning,” he explains.
Coming from a man who can never be serious about life, this is truly extraordinary.

Lt Col Angad Singh (rtd):
The denuding of forests all over India is resulting in the floods. Had we taken care to plant trees while cutting old ones, we would have saved precious land and human lives. We are paying for our misdeeds. Hope we have learnt a lesson now.

Bihari Milwani:
After covering the legs with full pant, we should now start covering our arms with full-sleeve shirts.