In another case of trafficking, two school girls who were taking shelter in the house of relatives were abducted from a village in Jagatsingpur. They had been taken to Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) and were held captive in the house of an accomplice of the abductors. The local police rescued them from Lucknow and handed them to the parents. These are some of the cases that came into the limelight due to media reports, but there may be several more that have gone reported and the victims not rescued.

Instances of women facing increased suffering at the hands of unsympathetic in-laws and relatives have also been reported. Some widows were abandoned by their in-laws after they lost their husbands to the cyclone as the family did not want to support them any more. In some cases, the victims were kept until the rehabilitation package was received, and after collecting the money on their behalf, the in-laws conveniently disowned them. Many orphans, too, suffered a similar fate.

The administration had asked the NGOs working for cyclone rehabilitation to help them identify single women like widows and destitutes with the intention of providing them institutionalised shelter. But since such listing requires time, few women waited to receive benefits promised by the district administration. The pangs of hunger pushed them to other avenues as villages hardly offer any community support to such vulnerable women.

"Women in cyclone affected areas are exposed to physical abuse", said the State Commission for Women after a tour of the cyclone affected areas. A former member of the National Commission for Women said that women were falling prey to anti-social elements due to the absence of proper rehabilitation systems. Interestingly, when asked about providing protection to women in those areas, the Commission conveniently passed the buck saying that the NCW can only take up investigation after such cases of exploitation were reported to the police. In such an uncertain situation, where agencies easily shirk responsibility in the name of following procedures, where does a woman turn for help? What other option does she have besides grasping the first helping hand that comes her way, and, in many cases, the hand belongs to exploiters in the guise of well-wishers.

Another unfortunate after-effect of the 1999 cyclone was the increased number of abortions, many through dangerous means.

It has been revealed that many pregnant women had aborted their babies since the family could not support an extra child in such difficult times. Sadly, many of them chose wrong methods such as taking an overdose of certain medications like ME Forte to induce abortions. A newspaper report mentioned that several women had been rushed to the medical centres after they developed complications after such self medication. When asked about choosing the safe option of medical termination of pregnancy, a person buying drugs from the chemist pointed out that they were begging for food, so where was the question of going in for expensive medical procedures? At the time of crisis, a woman was left alone to sort out her medical problem, even to the extent of risking her health.

A study on the response to the Orissa super cyclone conducted by the Voluntary Health Association of India has made a few pertinent suggestions. It is felt that social and gender issues need to have a separate focus within disaster management and development planning. Unless such issues are identified, included in the guidelines and enforced, the most vulnerable groups will continue to be the worst affected during natural disasters. Another suggestion is that the training of traditional birth attendants (TBAs) and Village Health Workers should be expanded to incorporate basic aspects of trauma management and counselling. This will help them to use their expertise in health and related hygiene and sanitary needs during disasters.

Women are not only vulnerable, but their lower economic and social status acts as a hindrance during disasters. They have fewer resources in their own right and under their control.