M A I N   N E W S

More areas come under flood fury, toll rises to 73

Patna, August 29
With fresh areas in Purnia, Saharsa and Madhepura coming into the grip of turbulent Kosi, the state government was facing the daunting task of evacuating flood victims to safer places, while the toll in the calamity had increased to 73.

With reports of 16 more deaths — six from Madhepura, four each in Katihar and Araria and two in Supaul — the toll rose to 73.

In Madhepura district, about four to eight ft flood water was flowing, while the local administration had appealed to the people to evacuate to safer places as the state government was providing the necessary mode of transportation for the purpose.

Some prisoners who had managed to escape from the Virpur jail in Supaul taking advantage of its inundation, returned to the jail on their own as they felt it was better to live behind the bars rather struggling for food and shelter in flooded areas.

The situation is likely to worsen further as the Met office predicted heavy rains in the flood-affected areas during the next 24 hours.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said evacuation of the trapped people was a tough job as the water had spread to 35 to 40 km area.

Meanwhile, an all-party meeting was held here during the day under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister in which it was decided that an all party monitoring committee would supervise the ongoing rescue and relief operation in the most-hit districts of Bihar.

After the meeting, Mr Kumar said apart from assisting in the operation, the committee would meet regularly in every 15 days to review the ongoing relief measures. — UNI

‘We’re eating raw rice without boiling it’

Patraghat (Bihar), August 29
Villagers were eating uncooked rice and flour mixed with polluted water in Bihar, officials said on Friday, as hunger and diseases accompanied the worst-ever floods in 50 years.

The Kosi river burst a dam in neighbouring Nepal earlier this month and surged into Bihar state, swamping village after village as authorities failed to evacuate millions on time.

At least 10 more people drowned overnight, raising the toll to 65, as the rising river waters smashed embankments and flooded vast areas in the eastern state, officials said.

More than two million people in distant villages in Bihar have been displaced and around a quarter of a million houses have been destroyed. Many have no means to cook food.

“We’ve lost our homes, we’ve lost our clothes, we’ve lost everything,” said Bijender, a villager walking along a road with his child.

“We are taking our children and leaving. We don’t know where we are going.” — Reuters