The monsoon fills waterbodies.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
Of late, the monsoon is welcomed with a mixed feeling. On the one hand, it blesses with its abundance and on the other, it brings in a lot of misery and destruction and throws life out of gear. The density of population and modern lifestyle have brought in many woes related to the monsoon. Overflowing drains, waterlogged roads, and collapse of buildings are a common occurrence.
But what is tragic in the past few years is many people lose lives while trying to capture the moment or just having a picnic in a picturesque spot by a serene stream that suddenly, unbelievably turn itself into a roaring, gushing monster. Most of us are just oblivious of the fact that waterbodies which could look dry could start overflowing suddenly.
We have studied in geography lessons about the drainage systems. Why are they called so? Every stream, every river has a considerable area around them to which it drains according to the slope, nature of rocks, topography and so on. So, when it rains, considering the huge area a stream or river drains into, the water flowing will be enormous and in no time, a thin stream or river could become potentially destructive.
In other cases, a river looking so suited to have a good time could be the downstream of a dam. When there is more inflow, the dam gates are opened to maintain the water levels. Unsuspecting people could be caught in the middle of ravaging waters in no time. Most of the time, it is not the locals but the tourists who find themselves in such situations, because the former know such water dynamics which the tourists are unaware of.
The reality of what we are seeing today is that tourism has taken a new dimension, what with beautifully, musically edited videos on social media platforms. People are just rushing to such places with the freedom technology has brought in. There is no need to ask for directions, the map takes you where you want to!
A few of us classmates had once found ourselves in one such precarious situation. We had been to the Jog Falls in Karnataka, the second highest waterfalls in India. This story dates back to some 15 years and there were not many restrictions then. The monsoon was yet to start and there wasn’t much flow. We walked to the top and crossed the plunge stream of one of the four such water falls.
It started drizzling and in no time, the water level started to increase and we found it difficult to cross the stream. Since we realised that water level would rise very soon, we could hold hands and cross over to safety soon.
So, always before entering the waters, it is prudent to learn about it. And talking to the locals would be one of the best way of doing it. Without the knowledge of an area, never blindly take the risk of putting you and the people around you into such life risks.
There are always safe and sound ways of enjoying a rain, a stream or whatever it is. It’s ridiculous to put oneself at risk just for the sake of taking a photograph or for being popular on social media. Nature around us is beautiful, yet the potential associated with it is sometimes even beyond our imagination which always calls for respect and responsibility to behave within our boundaries.
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