By Tarique Anwar, TwoCircles.net,
Patna: Even about two months after the worst ever flood of Kosi River in Bihar in the history of the country, the state government is yet to come up with rehabilitation plan for the victims. On the other hand, some Muslim organizations like Imarat Shariah are soon going to start their rehabilitation projects.
Lakhs of people were affected by the flood in mid-August in Northeastern Bihar. Thousands are feared to have been killed while lakhs are still in relief camps. The state government has not started any rehabilitation work for the flood survivors living in different relief camps.
According to some media reports 3, 611 people from different affected districts are missing and the government has not been able to trace them out in spite of official efforts started in mid-September.
As per rough official figure around 31.48 lakh people in Supaul, Madhepura, Araria, Saharsa and Purnea were affected by this flood. About 9.89 lakh people were evacuated, out of which 3.60 lakh stayed in government-run relief camps and thousands others in relief camps set up by NGOs and Muslim organizations like Imarat Shariah, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind.
As winter is approaching the Imarat Shariah has decided to build 1000 houses, first kuccha houses and then pukka houses.
Talking to TwoCircles.net Maulana Anisur Rahman Quasmi, general secretary, Imarat Shariah (Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa) gave details of Imarat’s rehabilitation programme. He said Imarat is going to make 1,000 houses for Muslim victims in five districts –Supaul, Araria, Purnea, Madhepura and Kishanganj – which are very badly affected by the flood.
The construction work will be done in two phases. In first phase, which will start by the end of October, temporary houses will be built so that the survivors can at least get a shelter to protect themselves from coming winters. These temporary houses will cost Rs 10-15 thousand each. In the second phase permanent plastered houses with concrete roof will be built which will cost at least 50,000 each, Maulana Anisur Rahman told TCN.
The worst affected people will be given preference in allotting the houses, he said. He has appealed to people to support the Imarat’s plan.
Jamaat-e-Islami has also announced building of 1,000 houses for the flood victims.
Meanwhile, some reports have surfaced regarding discrimination in providing facilities to the flood victims.
Md Minnatullah, head of Rahbar, an NGO working for relief work in Supaul, told TCN about discrimination in relief distribution on the ground of religion. He mentioned many complaints from the interior villages of the district. People from several villages, dominated by Muslims, alleged that they are being discriminated, Minnatullha said.
District Magistrate of Supaul, Sarvan Kumar, however, has refuted the allegation of discrimination.
Talking to TCN the DM denied all such allegations saying these are “rubbish”. “I do a meeting on every Monday with religious organizations and NGOs working there along with local legislators but nobody has ever complained about any discrimination,” DM Kumar said.
Giving details about the relief work he said that the government is operating 76 relief camps in Supaul district alone in which 1.36 lakh people are residing. Now people have started to leave the camp and moving to their homes. Now 83,000 people are in the relief camps, he informed.
He said the government has deputed one executive rank engineer under whom there is one junior engineer and superintending engineer in each block of Supaul for getting the damaged roads repaired to improve communication.
Praising the efforts made by different socio-religious and non-governmental organizations he said that they helped a lot in relief works.
He said Vijay Raghvan, a chief secretary rank officer, has been assigned the task of rehabilitation works. He, however, admitted that the government has not yet started any rehabilitation work.