JAJARKOT: At a time when day-to-day life of people is being adversely affected due to COVID-19 crisis, flood and landslide victims in Barekot village of Jajarkot district have been additionally reeling under the food scarcity, of late.

One of the victims, Man Bahadur Nepali of Siranchaur in Barekot village, said, "We are in a deep trouble as our food is running out of stock. We have been staying at a local school but the leaking roof is adding further agony during the monsoon."

"If the situation persists for a few more days, we might succumb to sorrow and hunger," Nepali lamented.

Fearing landslides and floods, more than 500 families have been displaced and are taking shelter at a local school, cowsheds, under the open skies, among other such places in the district.

According to Barekot Rural Municipality chief Mahendra Shah, displaced families are starving due to unavailability of food in the area. A depot run by the government to supply food to more than 20,000 inhabitants of Barekot Rural Municipality, mostly reeling under food scarcity, has been out of stock in recent days, Shah added.

In a bid to solve food scarcity problem in the area, government had asked Nepal Food Corporation to deliver 3,500 quintals of subsidised rice during this fiscal year. However, the local contractor delivered 1,058 quintals less than the required quantity, leading to food shortage.

Tekendra Nepali appealed to the government to listen to their plight.

Earlier, eleven people were killed and one was reported missing after a massive landslide swept through Barekot village on July 9. Similarly, two persons are still missing after being swept away by Dhumakhola in the area.

Meanwhile, security personnel deployed to carry out the search operation for those missing have returned to their base at district headquarters.

In the last few days, landslides, floods triggered by incessant rainfall have wreaked havoc across the nation, and obstructed vehicular movement in major highways.

Makeshift tents being used by landslide affected persons in Jajarkot. Photo: Dinesh Kumar Shrestha/THT