Kolkata chronicler distraught over news of flooding of his

Eminent Kolkata chronicler and writer P T Nair today expressed worry over the flooding of his house in Ernakulam in Kerala where he has stored archival records of the city's rich past.

The ground floor of his house at Chandamangalam in Ernakulam district of Kerala, where he had stored his rich collection of old newspaper clippings and other papers on the city, is still submerged and cannot be reached as all the approach roads are still flooded.

His family members had, however, escaped in the nick of time.

"As the flood waters approached my son Manoj, daughter-in-law Seema and my grandchildren quickly got into their vehicle and rushed to their sister Maya's residence in Ernakulam town, which is around 15 km from the Chandamangalam house on August 16," Nair told PTI here.

Nair stays in the city with his wife Sitha.

Stating that he is now in regular contact with his family over phone, the 85-year-old said "I had never heard about any calamity of this magnitude in Kerala in my life time.

Nair, who has archived Kolkatas history for the last 63 years, is worried about the fate of the old newspaper clippings stored in the ground floor of his house.

"I do not know what happened to the records which I had collected so painstakingly over the decades and preserved them. I would like to retrieve whatever remains once the water level recedes and I can visit our house," said the author of over 50 books on Kolkata.

Meanwhile, e-commerce giant Amazon and many others are utilising the technology platform of Goodera that connects companies with non-profit organisations to provide immediate relief to come to the aid of the flood-hit in Kerala, a statement by Goodera said.

A donation link https://giving.goodera.com/campaign/2/opportunity/44 has been launched for the cause.