Standing upright in the face of adversities defines a good administrator. The 2012 batch IAS officer, Kerala cadre, Mr. P. B. Nooh has amply demonstrated such qualities time and again. Be it combating the most devastating floods, Corona Virus, or Sabarimala agitation, he dealt with each issue as it came with a clear determination to conquer all the hurdles.
FIRST COVID HOTSPOT IN INDIA
Pathanamthitta was the first-ever Covid-19 hotspot in India, where Mr. Nooh was the District Collector. His quick decision-making quickly checked the spread of the virus. When the first three Covid cases came to light, he was quick to trace the patients and their primary contacts down, isolate them in hospitals and prepare an action plan by consulting several experts, all within a few hours.
An infected family returning from Italy and hiding its travel history caused panic in the state. but Mr. Nooh brought the situation under control. In an interview, he exclaimed “That was a scary moment. Until we set an action plan, I was a bit disturbed.”
He also set up a control room consisting of 50 young doctors and at the same time opened a call center where people could call to fulfill any medical requirement related to COVID or any other illness, and also gain non-medical help, in terms of food provision or ration, if needed.
STANDING TALL DURING THE SABARIMALA PROTESTS
Pathanamthitta being the gateway of Sabarimala shrine, was on the boil after the Supreme Court allowed the entry of women of menstrual age (10 to 50 years) in to the shrine, in 2018. Clash of ideologies subsequently resulted in massive protests. They were against the idea of the “banned” women entering the hill-top temple, believing that they might violate its purity. Thousands of protestors collected at the gate of Shrine at the time of its opening and the base camp of Nilakkal witnessed clashes between police and them.
Mr. Nooh was again quick to make a decision. He immediately imposed section 144, which prohibits the gathering of four or more people in an area, in four regions close to the Sabarimala temple – Nillakkal, Pamba, Sannidhanam, and Elavumkal. Prohibitory orders were in force for two days. He made it very clear that there would be no hindrance in the way of peaceful pilgrims, but at the same time, no protest in the area will be allowed.
A HERO IN THE 2018 KERALA FLOODS
Mr. Nooh’s woes spilled over in 2018 as soon after his taking over as the DC, the state was hit with one of the worst floods. The low-lying lands of Pathanamthitta bore most aggressive wrath of the raging waters. But Mr Nooh led his team to rescue about 1.4 lakh people from the water- logged areas.
He worked along with Mr. Hari Kishore, a former District Collector of Pathanamthitta, and together they worked hard and stayed in the control room from 5 PM to 4 AM while taking quick real time decision regarding the plan mapped to safely rescue the residents.
“The challenges were increasing at every moment. After getting boats, we thought we had won. But the boats remained in Lorries as the roads were damaged flooded. When the boats reached the river, they could not enter the water because of the cross currents. We missed a day! Then, when the boats entered the water, they could not go near many houses because of whirlpools. Helicopters could not pick up many people for various reasons like trees surrounding a house, old people unable to climb up the houses that did not have a roof top. It was not a resource crunch but practical difficulties that were a challenge for us” Mr Kishore said in an interview.
It rained for three days continuously. Mobile towers were damaged and the power supply cut hampering communication between Mr. Nooh and his team. They maintained their calm and kept on working without a minute’s rest. After all, the lives of lakhs of people depended on the decisions that they were making.
Mr. Nooh gives the credit to the entire state and believes that it was only because of great teamwork that everything became possible.
