ACT News Update

India 0304

As Indian flood waters go down, risks remain high

Geneva, August 17, 2004—Lutheran World Service – India (LWSI), a member of the global alliance Action by Churches Together (ACT) International, reported on August 11 that in Assam, one of two Indian states devastated by recent flooding, the water level of the Brahmaputra River has dropped below the danger level. However, residents of the flooded areas are still at risk from the flood’s effects, and LWSI plans to continue its assistance to people forced from their homes.

While the floodwaters are receding and some people are returning to their villages, many families are still living in relief camps and on high ground since a number of villages are still under water and inaccessible, particularly residents of the char (delta) areas of the Brahmaputra River basin.

Some people who have not yet returned to their villages are living on hills constructed by LWSI under previous ACT-supported appeals. Inadequate medical support is one major concern for these still-stranded groups. The main ailments among these groups are diarrhea, malaria, skin problems, cough and cold.

LWSI reported that in most of the affected areas, the availability of safe drinking water remains a problem. Most of the water sources were either damaged or submerged in the flooding. In the char areas of Dhubri and Goalpara, tube wells installed by LWSI under earlier ACT-supported projects are providing an uninterrupted supply of safe drinking water, which the residents of those areas feel fortunate to have.

LWSI personnel are distributing relief items to the affected people in relief camps, shelters on embankments and marooned villages. Staff are travelling extensively in boats to reach people stranded in remote villages with emergency supplies.

LWSI has purchased and sent to Assam 75 metric tons of pressed rice, 7.5 metric tons of molasses, 7,500 polythene sheets, 12,000,000 water-purification tablets, 4 metric tons of bleaching powder and 4 metric tons of lime dust. These supplies are being distributed to 18,502 families, and the distribution will be completed by August 20.

Because of slow funding of the appeal for the flooding, LWSI is revising its plan to provide clothing, mosquito nets, blankets, to only 3,500 families instead of the 10,000 families mentioned in the appeal, and it will not carry out any rehabilitation activities or build new mounds.

According to LWSI, in the past few days, rainfall in the area has been sporadic with periods of sun. The flood-related death toll in Assam stands at 200. Food prices are reported to have tripled. Road communication in the low-lying areas is still disrupted. Among the worst-affected in Assam are the daily wage earners and agricultural laborers.