Relief to flood victims

Now, the surging water is posing an alarming threat to the capital. According to flood forecasters, low-lying areas of Dhaka and Narayanganj are likely to be inundated in a few days' time. The authorities need to take contingency measures like pumping out the water from the low-lying areas to avoid any catastrophe. The disaster management and relief ministry seems to have been overtaken by the speed of flooding. The forecasting mechanism has been seized of the imminent danger rather belatedly. We wonder if the flood information sharing arrangement between India and Bangladesh has been working well!

Reports of inadequacy of relief materials in the affected areas as well as thousands of people being marooned have been pouring in. The authorities should take immediate steps to alleviate the miseries of people reeling under difficult circumstances. At first, all those who are marooned in far-flung areas need to be evacuated to safety as quickly as possible. Then, an adequate number of relief camps should be opened so as to provide the affected people with safe drinking water, food and medicine. As we have seen in the past, epidemics tend to spread quite fast when water begins to recede. Medical teams, well-stocked with oral saline sachets, water purification tablets, medicines and vaccines, must be immediately dispatched to the affected areas. To repair the breaches in the embankments and restore the disrupted communication links we might need the Army's help, sooner perhaps than later.

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