66,322 persons have taken shelter at flood relief camps in Bhojpur

Kumar Rajiv Nayan

Ara: River Ganga is still flowing 1.83 metre above the red mark though showing receding tendency but Sone is flowing below the danger in Bhojpur district. The flood water is still flowing three to four feet over  Shahpur – Barhara roads making communication impossible. The flood affected people are now clamouring for food and other essential commodities. They are destined to live without power for days together. Schools and colleges in the flood affected  areas are closed for the last 10 days. Banks and Post Office in the areas are also closed due to flood.

The flood water of Ganga entered some fresh areas under Ara and Bihia blocks on Thursday increasing the number of  flood affected villages to 364. The flood water is flowing three feet on Ara-Buxar main road near Chowkipur village for the last seven days and communication of Bampali, Badaka Gaon, Bibiganj, Karisath, Milki with the district headquarters Ara remains snapped. The milkmen have to come to Ara on boat for selling milk. The water of Ganga is flowing about 4 feet on Ara-Salempur road.

Bhojpur DM Birendra Prasad Yadav and the SP Kshatranil Singh along with other officials and medical teams visited a number of flood affected villages under Shahpur and Barahara blocks on Thursday and monitored the relief operations. They also inspected Keshavpur to Poraha-Mauzampur embankment and found it intact. The DM said that four teams of SDRF had been pressed into service in Bhojpur district. He said that 170 boats were also in operation and 10,000 food packets and 5,000 polythene sheets have so far been distributed under Barahara block. He said that 20,128 people and 3,000 cattleheads had so far been rescued from the flood affected areas.

Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Anjani Kumar Singh took stock of the flood situation in Bhojpur district through video conferencing and said that the Ganga flood has broken 22 years of record this year. He directed the DM to serve food to the flood affected people in plates and told him children should be given cloths, cattleheads be taken to safer places in big boats while special attention should be given to the pregnant women. He also urged the people not to take  bath in the flood water. Bhojpur DM said that 311 villages in 68 panchayats in Bhojpur district were affected by the flood and  66,322 people have taken shelter at 150 relief  centres and added that 11,064 polythenesheets and 22,740 packets of dry ration have been distributed among the people.