Tribal people from hamlet in Keralam’s Malappuram live in makeshift sheds seven years after flood

The river was rising fast. There was no time to even gather their belongings. Men, women and children ran uphill into the dark forest as the Chaliyar river swallowed part of the Vaniyampuzha tribal hamlet in Malappuram district. It was August 8, 2019.

By the time the water receded, their homes were gone. The bridges were washed away, cutting them off from the mainland. They thought they would return home. Seven years later, they are still living under plastic sheets. At night, the forest turns pitch dark. There is no electricity. Elephants move through the settlement. Leopards stalk goats and dogs. Women here are forced to wait until dark to venture into the bushes to relieve themselves.

For the 26 tribal families of the Vaniyampuzha tribal hamlet, the temporary shelter has become a permanent address.