Bihar Floods: Death Toll Rises to 119, Government Yet to Wake from its Slumber

The flood situation in Bihar has worsened further on Thursday, with the death toll rising to 119. According to the government data, the natural calamity has impacted the lives of 98 lakh people in 16 districts of the state.

Araria, Purnia, Kishanganj and Katihar district of Seemanchal region – the North-Eastern part of the state – are the worst hit, with a death toll of over 50. The situation in Supaul, Saharsa, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Gopalganj and East and West Champaran districts are also grim. The total death toll here so far, according to official figures, has climbed to 65.

Continuous rains in Nepal and the Northern parts of the state have triggered floods in Saharsa and Khagia districts as well, where seven deaths have recorded, said Anirudh Kumar, special secretary of the Disaster Management Department.

Though the government is claiming that it is working day and night to ease the victims’ sufferings, the question of the hour is what is the permanent solution to the problem?
 

Why is the government coming out of its slumber now, when the situation goes out of control almost every year?

The Mahananda River has wreaked havoc in the entire Seemanchal region. The famous Mahananda Basin project, which was said to have solved the problem to a great extent, has now become the victim of the government’s apathy and political will.

The roadmap of the Mahananda Basin project, along with West Bengal’s Teesta project, was charted out and signed by the Late Karpoori Thakur, the then chief minister of Bihar, and Late Jyoti Basu, then chief minister of West Bengal, on July 19, 1978. Forty years have passed since then and sadly, not a single brick has been laid so far.

“Had the politicians shown some seriousness, a loss of such a great magnitude and precious lives could have been saved. It is high time that the politicians and policy makers introspect what they have done to achieve the Mahananda Basin project in the past 40 years,” Mumtaz Naiyer, a resident of Kishanganj district, told NewsClick.

Meanwhile, a heart-wrenching video has emerged, that shows a family of three, including a child, getting washed away after a bridge collapsed in Araria district in Seemanchal region. The video – captured by a local – first shows an overflowing river uprooting a huge tree and carrying it away with the flow. It later destroys the bridge that was being used by locals to cross the river.

“My sister Jano, son Rahman and my nephew Sahil were crossing the bridge in Araria. However, it collapsed just before they could reach the other end of the bridge. All of them fell into the river and got washed away,” one of the family members of the deceased has been quoted by India Today.

The response of the government to nature’s fury, still appear to be snail-paced. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi have so far, just been busy in doing the aerial surveys.

Principal Secretary (Health) RK Mahajan told at a press meet that a toll-free number (104) has been launched by the health department to provide information on floods. Hospitals have been directed to maintain a sufficient stock of anti-snake and anti-rabies injections.

He said “boat ambulances” are also being operated. In the case of shortage of doctors, private doctors would be hired in primary health centres.

Principal Secretary of State Disaster Management Department Pratyay Amrit said that 3.59 lakh people have been rescued to safer places. “Out of them, 2.13 lakh have been put in 504 relief camps in different places, while 1,112 community kitchens are feeding 3.19 lakh flood victims,” he told reporters.

Food packets, he said, are being air-dropped in inundated areas, while in places where flood waters have receded, they are being supplied through Panchayats.

“A total of 114 boats of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 92 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and 70 of the Army have been deployed for relief and rescue works,” Amrit added.

Amrit Lal Meena, principal secretary (road construction), said that 124 roads, including national highways, have suffered damage.

According to Rural Works Department Principal Secretary Bipin Kumar, 222 hand pumps have been disinfected in Araria and 219 in Kishanganj districts, so that citizens could get purified drinking water.