We thank God who has provided IEA as a Blessing.
I am Isak Digal, Age- 74 years, Son of Late Sadura Diga, Village- Gotapanga, Block- K, Nuagam, Kandhamal, Odisha, India. I have 3 sons and 1 daughter. My 2 sons Rahul Digal, Age 22 Years and Samir Kumar Digal, Age- 28 years are also beneficiaries of the Rebuilding Program. Our entire family is victim of the Kandhamal Communal Violence 2008. Our village is situated in an isolated region.
During the Communal Violence 2008, we left our home and ran for life to the nearby forest. We are just 1 joint family. But standing in faith with the Lord is our long term commitment. We were caught in much fear as we do not have nearby neighbors to help or rescue us during the time of riot. Before the mob could arrive we fled to the jungle for shelter and life. We saw our houses and properties looted and set ablaze on fire. After spending 5 days without proper shelter, food and water in the jungle, the Police Administration came and asked us to take shelter in the Block K, Nuagam Relief Camp. We reached out to the Relief Camp. We stayed in the Relief Camp for about 2 months. Then we were asked to move to the Sirtiguda Panchayat and we stayed in the Kudupakia Relief Camp for about 6 months. After the violence we spend 12 months in unspeakable pain, which cannot be described in mere words. After 10 months from the violence when we reached our house we found that our entire Life and Livelihood has been wiped out. My sons had to migrate to neighboring states for Labor and Income. We could not afford our living. We had some livestock and made some income by selling them. However, most of it was looted. Our access to natural resources was limited. We apprehended our movement due to the remoteness of the area.
With very little income we struggled for bread and butter. My 2 sons are married now but we do not have shelter. The newborns were prone to illness and bad health. We stayed in a mud house and did not have four proper walls due to which we found hard to resist the intense cold. Sometimes during natural calamities the walls used to collapse and we needed money every time to reconstruct it.
During this period of misery, we heard about relief and rebuilding program from India Evangelistic Association, Kanika Road, Tulsipur, City-Cuttack, PIN-753008. During this time it is only India Evangelistic Association who provided Relief and Rehabilitation to victims of Kandhamal Violence till date. The Field Supervisor and Coordinator visited our dwelling place and saw our situation and enlisted us into the program fold.
We realize that our indigenous and native belongingness to our district have been reduced to emptiness. Being a Minority in Kandhamal we are being treated differently as outsiders. Our suffering encapsulated in poverty has added more pain in our dwelling and living.
It was a dream come true and we never imagined that we would be able to construct a safe place for our happy dwelling. I thank India Evangelistic Association for their generous support in due time. All resources have been supplied in time. Despite Monsoons being a hurdle and Labor and Mason costs have also increased, we still were able to complete the house. IEA Project supervisor and coordinator have monitored us strictly to see that the Construction gets completed in time.
I once again thank for what IEA have done for us in this period of mobilizing support for construction and house for shelter. May God almighty be with us and restore the days of revival.
