Emergencies

 Bihar floods, Chondipur village. Flood-affected people wait to be evacuated by a rescue team at Chondipur village of Madhepura district in India's eastern state of Bihar August 31, 2008. (Copyright: REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri / courtesy of www.alertnet.org , International Save the Children Alliance)

India Floods

Save the Children is completing new assessments in the severely affected districts of Madhepura and Saharsa. 

These assessments have looked at the current situation for the people who remained in their villages and further needs in the camps. Initial findings from the team suggest a need for further distributions, especially for families to be able to store clean water.

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Latest situation report

 

  • On 13th September, police announced that the official death toll stood at 143 people  though this could rise significantly in the coming weeks as the waters begin to recede.

 

  • On 11th September, the Government of India reported that 2,353 villages in 16 districts have been affected by the floods.

 

  • In response to the large numbers of displaced people, 357 relief camps have been established which currently house 335,410 people. 

 

  • We plan to reach 10,000 families (60,000 people including 40,000 children). 

 

  • Save the Children is completing new assessments in the severely affected districts of Madhepura and Saharsa.  These assessments have looked at the current situation for the people who remained in their villages and further needs in the camps. Initial findings from the team suggest a need for further distributions, especially for families to be able to store clean water, care of pregnant women, an IYCF programme support, as well as medium to longer term food security and livelihoods.

 

  • Save the Children continues to respond in Araria district. The community kitchen in Phulkahar camp Araria has now been closed as the government has taken over food aid distribution.  Save the Children is now focusing on distributions of much needed items and the provision of safe play areas for children.

 

  • Following a rapid nutrition assessment has in the  severely affected blocks of Khagaria district,  a community kitchen ( 7th September) has been set up for pregnant and lactating mothers, children, older people and disabled groups so they can access a cooked meal per day. We are reaching 1000 individuals everyday out of which 600 are children. This area has an ongoing problem of acute malnutrition among children.

 

  • In two camps in Araria, Save the Children will complete distributions in the coming week of hygiene kits, jerry cans, household kits and tarpaulins to support the prevention of illnesses spreading through the camps. This will cover over 3000 families, approximately 18,000 people, of which an estimated 9,500 will be children.

 

  • On Sunday 21 September, Save the Children in conjunction with the Government of Bihar, Indian Red Cross and UNICEF will be launching a family tracing and reunification programme. This programme will be implemented in all the flood affected districts and will provide families with information about lost relatives with the aim of reunifying families where possible. 

 

  • In Phulkahar camp, Save the Children has been working with partner organisations to stop children queuing in food lines, and encourage families to ensure this does not happen.

 

  • We will be reaching out to 5,500 families in the next two weeks with hygiene kits.

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