Landslide-hit areas of Wayanad finds voice through ham radio
Wayanad (Kerala) (PTI): As the devastating landslides ravaged a hilly area of Wayanad, leaving a trail of destruction and chaos in their wake, a group of ham radio enthusiasts rose to the challenge, establishing a critical communication network that has helped save lives and facilitate rescue efforts.
The amateur radio system, set up by volunteer operators on the ground floor of the District Collector's office in Kalpetta, has been providing vital information to affected communities and authorities, facilitating rescue efforts and relief operations.
"The situation was dire, with mobile phone services available only to a very limited extent," an official release said here on Saturday.
"District Collector D R Meghashree reached out to the ham radio operators, and they have been instrumental in keeping the lines of communication open," it said.
Receivers, amplifiers, computers for logging and digital modulation, and other equipment are used to operate the station. Ham radio operators transmit information from the disaster area to the station through ham radio transmitters. A repeater setup at Ambalavayal Ponmudi Kotta facilitates ham radio communication.
The repeater was set up by the Sultan Bathery DX Association, a ham radio operators' organisation.
The ham radio operators, led by Sabu Mathew, chairman of the Sultan Bathery DX Association, and Dr Abraham Jacob, a senior ham radio operator and pathologist at Sultan Bathery Government Hospital, have been working tirelessly to ensure that information from the disaster area reaches the authorities in a timely manner.
They have set up a repeater at Ambalavayal Ponmudi Kotta, which has enabled us to extend our coverage to the affected areas, the district authorities said.
"The operators are accompanying each rescue team, providing real-time updates on the situation on the ground," the release said.
The ham radio operators have also been instrumental in coordinating rescue efforts, with the first rescue team that reached Mundakkai seeking their help to bring locals to safety.
"Ham radio messages came to their aid, and the rescue members were able to facilitate their evacuation," the release added.
As the rescue efforts continue, the ham radio operators remain committed to keeping the communication lines open, providing a vital lifeline to the affected communities.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
