Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who represents Thiruvananthapuram in Parliament, on Wednesday released a report of his visit to the United Nations offices in Geneva, Switzerland. The legislator provided details of his talks on Tuesday with the world organisation and international humanitarian agencies on the Kerala flood crisis.
Tharoor’s report came a day after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the Congress leader was not the state government’s emissary. Tharoor, however, claimed he had consulted Vijayan before undertaking the meetings and had apprised him of the “utility of these discussions, their nature and purport, and the specific areas of priority for the chief minister”.
The Congress leader has also reportedly written to Vijayan about the details of these meetings and the possible course of action for the state.
Tharoor went to Geneva to visit former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan’s family after he died. He said he had met Michael Moller, the director general of the UN Offices in Geneva, the deputy director and the chief of emergency programmes of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, World Health Organisation’s Deputy Director-General for Emergency Preparedness and Response Dr Peter Salama, and Peter Maurer, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The international agencies have suggested steps the state can now take as it looks to rebuild, Tharoor said. The state government can examine if it requires a multi-sector needs assessment by United Nations agencies such as the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Children’s Fund and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
“Depending on whether the quantum of long-term reconstruction assistance from central government is adequate, the state government could give thought to holding an international reconstruction conference to rebuild Kerala better in partnership with the UN system so that significant international assistance in reconstruction can be facilitated,” Tharoor said.
The government can request the World Health Organisation for two million stocks of anti-cholera vaccines to minimise the risk of water-borne diseases, and accept the Red Cross or the Gujarat Forensics University’s offer of support as appropriate, he added.
India may, however, not accept help from the United Nations. Media reports have suggested that the Centre may turn down the United Arab Emirates’ offer of Rs 700 crore for flood relief work because of a 14-year-old convention on accepting foreign aid. Unidentified government officials cited former Prime Manmohan Singh’s decision to reject offers of foreign assistance after a tsunami struck the eastern coast in 2004.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!