Rajbiraj, August 15

The sun shone today after six days of heavy rain and the flood victims in Saptari felt a sense of relief.

After the rain ceased, the water level has started to dip in inundated houses, shops, roads and offices.

Relief and rescue has picked up pace.The flood displaced and people who lost their relatives, however, are grieving.

Domi Yadav, 53 of Deuri Bharuwa at Rajbiraj Municipality went missing in the flood last Thursday He was swept away while repairing the embankment. His whereabouts are yet to be known. His status has left his family grieving.

Flood victim Ram Kumar Yadav from Dalawa of Rampura Malhaniya Rural Municipality complained that they had not been able to eat and sleep well for the past five days. Yadav’s family has been living in a tent on the roadside. He said they had received noodles, beaten rice and rice as relief from the government.

Another flood victim Satya Narayan Yadav complained that his family was living in a tent. He said flood displaced people lacked food.

Flood victims from Kusaha village complained that the rice they received from District Disaster Rescue Committee was rotten and stinking.

Most of the flood victims complained that genuine victims were deprived of government relief as party leaders had distributed relief to victims of their constituency, keeping in view the third phase of the civic polls.

The Nepali Army has stepped up work to repair damaged embankments in flood-hit areas. The NA distributed beaten rice and noodles by helicopter in flood-hit areas today.

Saptari Chief District Officer Bhagirath Pandey said that all human resources available in the district were mobilised to provide clean water and food to the victims to avert epidemic from breaking out in flood-hit areas.

He said that relief distribution was under way on war footing in collaboration with several  organisations.