Social Capital, Resilience and Coping with Disaster: A Case Study of Pulikeezhu Block Panchayat in Post-deluge Kerala.

Abstract

Though a sense of normalcy has returned to Kerala after the waters have ebbed, the scarring memories of the devastating floods in late-August persist in the Malayali psyche. The state of Kerala fell victim to an unprecedented deluge that snuffed out lives of over 483 men, women and children and causing a severe blow to the economy of the State. The deluge, attributed to be caused by a combination of incessant rains, low reservoir capacity, gradual environmental degradation and poor dam management is reported to have been the worst the state of Kerala has seen since 1924. Amidst this doom and gloom, many people have noticed a discernable difference in the way rescue and rehabilitation were conducted. It was appreciated for its egalitarian and humane and inclusive nature. Unlike in many parts of India, this ethical involvement and the informed response of civil society were mostly not beset by fault lines on the basis of religion, caste, class and political affiliation. How can we attempt to explain this thoughtful humanitarian effort at a juncture where political polarization and religious fundamentalism seems to have corrupted our understanding of ‗a common good‘? Paradoxically, it was Adam Smith who, most prominently is associated with his advocacy of self-interest, wrote in his first book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, How selfish so ever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortune of others, and render their happiness necessary to him, though he derives nothing from it, except the pleasure of seeing it‘ (Smith 1759). It was evident from the spontaneous outpouring of voluntary work by thousands, the ‗heroic‘ actions of the fisherfolk, mobilisation of financial and non-financial resources by nonresident Keralites, the collection of enormous quantities of essential goods etc. that the social fabric of Kerala had embedded enormous quantities of trust within it. This intangible social asset of social capital definitely had a huge role to play by providing for informal insurance, shelter, day-care for children, mutual aid etc. during and post the deluge. Daniel Aldrich in his seminal work Social Capital in Post- Disaster Recovery had argued that ‗high levels of social capital – more than such commonly referenced factors as socioeconomic conditions, population density, amount of damage or aid – serve as a core engine of recovery‘. v This dissertation tries to explore this relationship, between the intersection of social capital, trust and disaster resilience, in the context of the recent Kerala floods. The dissertation also tries to address the larger theoretical implications of the lack or the presence of social trust (and social capital) for the idea of India and that of Kerala as an ‗imagined community‘. This assumes significance considering the debates around social policy and the idea of social citizenship hopes to further knowledge creation at the intersection of Markets, Morals, Rights and the State.