Ambeghar: Living On The Edge

Brut India

In July 2021, major landslides across Maharashtra killed hundreds of people and several required emergency evacuation. Brut met locals of Ambegarh who were severely impacted by the landslide and spent sleepless nights in fear of another disaster.

Transcript

00:00This is the only way to get to the other side of the river.

00:08What are you going to do now?

00:10What can I do now?

00:11I can't stay here.

00:12What can I do in this rain?

00:18I cut my hair.

00:20I cut my hair like this.

00:22I cut my hair like this.

00:24I cut my hair like this.

00:25I cut my hair like this.

00:26I cut my hair like this.

00:27I cut my hair like this.

00:29I cut my hair like this.

00:32The water has started to go out of our house.

00:36Now it's gone.

00:38It's gone.

00:43We are going home after being beaten.

00:46We have worked hard.

00:49We will go and beg for alms.

00:52We will go and have food from the cows.

00:57Children, the money will run out tomorrow, but it won't be over yet.

01:06There are crores in the bank, tomorrow it will be two crores less.

01:11I have to go to the bank tomorrow.

01:22In July 2021, major landslides across Maharashtra killed around 192 people.

01:29One of these landslides wiped out a portion of an elevated village called Ambegar.

01:34Every road to the village was blocked, but brute journalist Abhijit Mane

01:39trekked for more than four hours to reach those stranded on the hilltop.

01:43Brute was the only media that attempted to tell their story.

01:48I used to sleep like this.

01:51I used to sleep on the floor.

01:55I didn't know how to get to the roof.

01:59The bricks were falling down.

02:05Two bricks were falling down.

02:08Two people died.

02:10I woke up and saw that my bricks were falling down.

02:14When our team came here, we were preparing for the flood.

02:20Then we got this situation that a landslide happened.

02:23When we came here, everything was in shambles.

02:27How many people were there?

02:29There were nine people in my house and six people upstairs.

02:33There were 15 people in total.

02:39We found the body of a family here.

02:44But the child is missing.

02:48The child's parents?

02:50Yes, the whole family.

03:06This was the region's first serious landslide,

03:09so it came as a shock to villagers who have been living here for generations.

03:14This has never happened before.

03:17This has happened only once.

03:19This has never happened before.

03:21We have suffered a lot.

03:24We have lost our grandchildren.

03:27How many years have you been here?

03:29We have been here for four generations.

03:38People have suffered a lot here.

03:42But no one has told us what happened.

03:46No one has told us what happened.

03:49And we have never seen it.

03:53Before disaster struck,

03:55villagers picked up on many warning signs in the environment around them,

03:59such as changes in water flow,

04:01cracks in the earth,

04:02and peculiar animal behavior.

04:06If the rain continues,

04:08the landslide can come down even further.

04:10Or the top of the hill,

04:12the top of the hill in the village,

04:13it can come down there too.

04:15Then it can go up to 200-250 feet.

04:19What did you say?

04:21We lost our homes.

04:23We are old people.

04:25We don't have a place to stay.

04:27Where can we go?

04:29The whole house is full of water.

04:31Look.

04:32This is our house.

04:33Where does the water come from?

04:34The whole house is full of water.

04:37Can you see?

04:38The whole house is full of water.

04:40The whole house is full of water.

04:41Look at this.

04:42The whole house is full of water.

04:44Disaster Management Act 2002

04:50It is always portrayed that

04:52disaster is some sudden occurrence.

04:54But it is not so.

04:55Many times, it is a man-made disaster.

04:58The Disaster Management Act 2002

05:01does not specify that

05:03we should work only after a disaster occurs.

05:07Most of the time,

05:08we see that we should work only after a disaster occurs.

05:11Many people lose their lives.

05:16Continuous heavy rains have kept the villagers on edge.

05:20They are scared that their house

05:21could be the next one swallowed by a landslide.

05:26It was like that at night.

05:28We woke up at 2 a.m.

05:30We were outside at 2 a.m.

05:32We thought we would die here.

05:34We were so scared.

05:38Look at the mess we are in.

05:41That was our house.

05:43We lived in that house.

05:47I was so scared that my house collapsed.

05:50My husband was in the house.

05:51He was making a mess.

05:53He was making a mess in the house.

05:55I was crying out for my husband's name.

05:58I was crying out for my husband's name.

06:00My house is collapsing.

06:01My husband is suffering.

06:02You were scared.

06:03Yes.

06:04There was no room.

06:05Everything was empty.

06:06There was no room.

06:07We could have gone there.

06:08We could have gone there.

06:09If we hadn't stayed there,

06:10who would have given us food?

06:13If we had gone there,

06:15what would have happened?

06:18We are not sleepy.

06:21If we don't sleep at night,

06:22we feel scared.

06:24It has been raining more than before.

06:27But it hasn't stopped at all.

06:29How do you feel?

06:30It has been raining since last night.

06:32It will continue to rain.

06:34Yes.

06:35It will continue to rain for us too.

06:38It will continue to rain for us too.

06:43Maharashtra has a rehabilitation scheme

06:45that's meant to provide affected communities

06:47with enough resources to rebuild their lives.

06:50But locals are apprehensive.

06:56I don't think anyone should come here at this hour.

07:00I don't think anyone should come here at this hour.

07:02Have you come here to rebuild their lives?

07:04Yes.

07:05If the government helps us,

07:06they should help us.

07:07That's why we are standing here.

07:10We can't do anything if we don't help.

07:12We will see what happens.

07:13We have created a huge problem

07:15in the rehabilitation scheme.

07:17We don't want to let it go.

07:18What's important is that

07:20our lives are in danger.

07:22We have to stay strong.

07:27What's there to eat?

07:28What's there to eat?

07:31We have food to eat.

07:46How long has it been?

07:48It's been 20 days.

07:49Do you have enough to sell?

07:50We have enough to sell.

07:51These people have created a problem.

07:53But their lives are in danger.

07:58The river has stopped.

08:00But where will the river go?

08:02The river will flow back to the border.

08:04What will happen to us here?

08:05We can't live here.

08:07How can we live here,

08:09when the government has created problems?

08:10We have to live and earn on our own.

08:15What do we do now?

08:17We can't live here.

08:20How will we survive

08:21How are we going to live here?

08:23Isn't it?

08:25No, we won't go.

08:27We won't go.

08:29Shankar,

08:31Shankar Jyotiba Kolekar

08:33I have been working

08:35in a famous company for 40 years.

08:37I lost my job.

08:39I have a farm, land, a house.

08:41This house, that house.

08:43I want to go to Patan or

08:45Satara or Agra.

08:47Do you want to meet me?

08:49Or

08:51do you want to eat cornflakes?

08:55You get everything here.

08:57Furnace, mangoes.

08:59You get everything.

09:01If you go to Rana, you won't get

09:03Mughal food, you will get Rana food.

09:05What will you get down there?

09:07If we go to Rana,

09:09we will get Rana food.

09:11We will get Khekdi.

09:13We won't get anything.

09:15What will you eat?

09:17Cornflakes.

09:19The money

09:21will run out tomorrow.

09:23But this won't run out.

09:27There are crores in it.

09:29Tomorrow it will be 2 crores less.

09:31But that crore won't last.

09:35Everyone is having fun

09:37but they are not spending money.

09:39What will you eat?

09:41I came to your house.

09:43I came to your house.

09:45I came to your house.

10:01Maharashtra is the first state

10:03in which there is a law

10:05on re-enactment.

10:07Still, it is not known

10:09where the re-enactments

10:11are taking place.

10:13There is not a single case

10:15where the re-enactments

10:17are taking place.

10:19It is very easy to live

10:21in the environment

10:23we are living in.

10:25It is very important

10:27to give them a place

10:29where they can live.

10:31Are you all from Ambegar?

10:33No, we are from Kayar.

10:35Is there a village down there?

10:37No, there is a village up there.

10:39Is there a village down there?

10:41No, there is a village up there.

10:43For some villagers,

10:45re-location is not an option.

10:47But with their livelihoods

10:49washed away and the looming

10:51threat of more landslides,

10:53the future looks as unstable

10:55as the ground beneath them.

10:57We have a lot of land up there.

10:59We have a lot of land up there.

11:01We have a lot of land up there.

11:03We need water, electricity,

11:05we need water, electricity,

11:07That is what we need.

11:11So we need water wherever

11:13we are sent,

11:15that is why we are leaving.

11:19We have to live.

11:21We have to survive.

11:23If the land softens,

11:25nothing will get done.

11:27If the land softens,

11:29nothing will get done.

11:31Otherwise, we won't survive.

11:37You

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