M A I N   N E W S

PM announces Rs 1,000-cr for relief, rescue

Purnia, August 28
Terming the floods in Bihar as a “national calamity”, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today announced an immediate release of Rs 1,000 crore and 1.25 lakh metric tonnes of foodgrains to the state reeling under an unprecedented deluge caused by Kosi.

Singh, who undertook an aerial survey of the four worst-affected districts along with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, announced a relief of Rs 1 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for next of kin of each of victims.

Singh said the Centre would provide all necessary material and technical assistance to Bihar to prevent further deterioration in the embankments and protective structures.

A high-level team would be set up to co-ordinate matters with the Nepal government.

With an “unprecedented” scale of relief measure required over an extended period, the Centre will procure and supply tarpaulin tents and GI sheets as per the state government’s request.

Special IAF sorties will be arranged for providing packaged drinking water. The ministry of home affairs and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will together provide 100 additional motorised boats for rescue operations while IAF choppers would be deployed for evacuation. Singh was accompanied by union ministers Shivraj Patil, Lalu Prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan as well as chief minister Nitish Kumar and leader of the opposition Rabri Devi.

Singh, however, could not survey the entire 100 km stretch of the flood-hit districts because of bad weather, the chief minister said.

Kumar expressed satisfaction over the relief package but said more aid will be needed in coming months.

“The package announced by the Prime Minister is satisfactory at the moment to tackle the gigantic task of reaching relief to over 20 lakh people affected by the floods in the four district with the Kosi changing course inundating vast areas,” the chief minister said.

Stating that the package was in conformity with the demands he had placed before the Prime Minister during his visit to New Delhi yesterday, Kumar said the state would soon require around Rs 900 crore to Rs 950 crore for reconstruction of the embankments breached by rivers in Bihar.

“Apart from the estimated due of Rs 2500 crore the state spent on providing relief to the flood-hit areas in Bihar during last year’s rainy season, we will require more assistance (from the Centre) for reconstructing villages, run camps for relief for the next three to four months, construct sanitary toilets and solve housing problems,” Kumar said. — PTI

Pranab talks to Nepalese counterpart
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 28
External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee is understood to have discussed the whole gamut of bilateral ties with his Nepalese counterpart Upendra Yadav in the first high-level contact between the two countries since the Prachanda government assumed office in the Himalayan country.

Yadav is here for the meeting of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) foreign ministers to be held tomorrow.

Sources said the two leaders also discussed the tentative dates for Prime Minister Prachanda’s visit to India, which could take place next month.

Prachanda had visited China last week on his first overseas visit after becoming the Prime Minister to attend the Olympic Games closing ceremony in Beijing. This triggered a controversy as traditionally India is the first country visited by any new Nepalese Prime Minister.

Another issue that figured at the meeting between the two foreign ministers was the floods caused in Bihar due to the Kosi river changing its course leading to immense loss of lives and property.

The Kosi also known as the “river of sorrow” has been causing severe damage to both India and Nepal and the current situation, which has led the Indian government to declare the area in Bihar affected by the floods as a ‘catastrophe’, is a major issue of concern to both countries.