[cr-india] request for details of amateur radio.......

[sajan venniyoor]

On Sat, 01 Jan 2004 soch at vsnl.com wrote :
>I would be extremely grateful if anybody can forward me details of the >amateur radios that were functioning around the area and what >information/communication they could possibly extend. Seems that so many >lives could have been saved if they had allowed cr function.....

Dear Sagari,

There are several amateur (ham) radio operators doing good work in the tsunami hit areas, even the Andaman & Nicobar islands. There are good articles on the subject on arrl.org (eg., 'Amateur Radio "Saved Lives" in South Asia', www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/12/29/100/?nc=1). You could also check out hamradioindia.org, niar.org and dailydx.com.

As for CR, you are right: so many lives could have been saved if they had allowed CR stations to come up. To quote Dylan, 

'Yes, ’n’ how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
Yes, ’n’ how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn’t see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind..."

Sajan.
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Radio Amateurs, DXpedition Team Handle Emergency Traffic in Disaster's Wake

Dec 27, 2004--Here is an update on the current situation in India, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Sri Lanka. VU2HFR (Horey Majumdar) reports that radio amateurs in India are handling hundreds of pieces of health and welfare traffic regarding people missing and from relatives of those living in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which are closer to the earthquake's epicenter.

"There is presently no communication from Nicobar Islands," Majumdar reports, noting that Nicobar received more damage than Andaman. McClenny says the VU4RBI/VU4NRO DXpedition team continues to pass traffic and occasionally hand out QSOs. C. K. "Ram" Raman, VU3DJQ, reports he was in contact with Sarath, 4S7SW, a physician operating from the vicinity of a hospital in Mathara, Sri Lanka, which also was heavily hit by the tsunamis. "He is requesting food, clothing and medicines for relief," Raman reported. "He will be listening 14.195 and 21.295." Telephones are not working there, he said.

McClenny and Majumdar agree that it was fortuitous that the VU4RBI/VU4NRO DXpedition was under way when the disaster struck. "If there is a positive aspect to this disaster, it may very well be that the Indian government--and others--realize the ability of Amateur Radio during these difficult times," McClenny observed.

Sandeep Baruah, VU2MUE, reports two emergency frequencies have been established. VU4NRO, the team at Port Blair, will be QRV on or near 14.190 MHz. The club station VU2NRO in Hyderabad on the mainland will relay traffic to and from Port Blair.

Other emergency traffic frequencies being reported include 14.193 and 14.160 MHz in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 7.050 MHz in South India, 7.055 MHz in Indonesia and 7.075 in Thailand, where stations from 4S7, VU2 and 9M2 were reportedly heard.

D.V.R.K. Murthy, VU2DVO,and Jose Jacob, VU2JOS, are now in Port Blair. Reports indicate that some telephone lines are now working, but there still is no water or electricity at the Hotel Sinclair, where the VU4 DXpedition was headquartered.

It is possible that Amateur Radio operators may travel to this area after obtaining clearance from local authorities. Club station VU2NCT and VU2MUE in Calcutta all are helping with the efforts to pass emergency traffic to Port Blair.

Baruah is operating club station VU2NCT in coordination with the National Disaster Control, New Delhi. The Calcutta VHF Amateur Radio Society has set up a control station from Calcutta. Majumdar is operating that station and has been in touch with VU4RBI in the Andamans.

Majumdar also tells ARRL that hams from Bangalore and Chennai on the Indian mainland are moving toward Nagapattinam to set up ham radio disaster communication stations at Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu--the worst-affected areas on the mainland. The Indian Army is assisting stations on Andaman by providing logistics and backup batteries.

Majumdar says radio amateurs from Bangalore, Chennai and other parts of South India are trying to set up stations in the affected areas of Tamil Nadu.

James Brooks, 9V1YC, says Andaman and Nicobar Islands authorities have asked the DXpedition team for relief communications help. VU2RSB will be manning the station at the deputy commissioner's office in Port Blair, and VU2RSI will staff the station at the current DXpedition site until further notice.

He reports the Indian Army will be flying VU2MYH and VU2DVO out to the Nicobar Islands with three days' food, a rig, batteries and an inverted V.
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