Geneva, 26 October 2005 - India
is again being hit by incessant torrential rainfall, affecting several
parts of the country including West Bengal. More than three million people
continue to reel under the effects of these torrential rains which started
on 18 October. Thirteen people have since lost their lives and tens of
thousands of people remain marooned by the floods. The rains have now eased
off somewhat except in the districts of East and West Midnapore. The rains,
triggered by a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal have wreaked havoc
in East and West Midnapore and North and South 24 Parganas, North Dinaipur,
Hooghly and Burdwan districts, causing massive damage to crops and property.
East & West Midnapore Districts
ACT member Lutheran World Service India (LWSI) reports that East and West Midnapore districts are the most severely affected. The rivers Kelaghai, Kanshabati, Kapaleswari, Chandia have broken their banks and inundated thousands of villages. Water from adjoining districts also flows to the sea through the East Midnapore district.
In East Midnapore 2,500 villages have been submerged by flood water and tens of thousands of people are marooned. Some 20,000 houses have been destroyed and 47,000 seriously damaged. Boats are being used for rescue and evacuation. Around 127,900 people have been evacuated to rescue centres and 87,000 people are currently living under plastic sheeting.
In West Midnapore around 2,000 villages are submerged.
South & North 24 Parganas Districts
The most severely affected blocks are Pathar Pratima, Sagar, Sandeshkhali, Kakdip, Mathurapur, Namkhana in South 24 Parganas and Bongaon, Gaighata, Bagda of North 24 Parganas. Standing crops and winter vegetables have been damaged/destroyed. Flood affected families from Basirhat, Gobardanga, Barasat, Madhyamgram municipality have taken shelter in school buildings. 2,000 and 5,000 houses have been destroyed in South 24 Parganas and in North 24 Parganas respectively. 15,000 houses have been damaged in South 24 Parganas.
Kolkata
Rains have lashed Kolkata and its neighborhood for a fifth consecutive day. Residents in low lying areas in the city have been in knee to waste-deep water for the last couple of days.
Some of the operational areas under the LWSI Urban Development Project are also flooded.
The Government has provided some relief supplies to the flood affected, however relief has not reached many of the more inaccessible areas. Officials of the flood hit districts report that this deluge is worse than the one in 1978. According to the local press, West Bengal authorities have sent relief materials comprising food-rice, dal and tarpaulin sheets to the flood affected areas. People are currently living out in the open on embankments and road sides. The most urgently needed materials are dry food, ready to-eat food, baby food, plastic sheeting, drinking water, medicines, water purifier, and bleaching powder, etc.
The Inter Agency Group of INGOs is meeting in Kolkata on 27 October to discuss the response. The affected families mostly belong to marginalised and economically challenged groups whose mud houses have either been totally washed away or badly damaged. The winter is about to set in hence the urgency to provide timely relief to the most vulnerable of the affected who have no resources to fall back on.
LWSI/ACT has consulted the other ACT members and it was agreed that LWSI will respond to this emergency situation.
LWSI /ACT Response
LWSI/ACT has been approached by various NGOs to assist in the immediate relief operations and the State and District Administration has requested that LWSI respond with immediate relief and long term rehabilitation in East Midnapore district of West Bengal.
LWSI/ACT is preparing to dispatch dry food and BP5 Protein Biscuits along with polythene sheeting for temporary roofing. In consultation with the district administration, LWSI team will finalize the area of operation and co-ordinate the response activities with other local NGOs.
LWSI/ACT is currently putting together a proposal for immediate relief only which is expected to have a bottom line of around US$ 400,000. We would be grateful for any indications of funding from our donors.
Any funding indication or pledge should be communicated to Jessie Kgoroeadira, ACT Finance Officer (jkg@act-intl.org).