3,000 flood victims in Saptari facing difficulties due to lack of relief materials

Biratnagar, July 28:

Incessant rains and water-logging have led to an outbreak of viral fever at many places of Morang district.

District Public Health Office chief Bhanu Yangden said that the number of persons visiting health centres for treatment of viral fever is increasing by the day.

Dulari, Belbari, Itahara, Madhumalla, Urlabari, Sanischare and many other VDCs of the district are in the grip of viral fever, said Yangden, adding that the DPHO is organising health education and awareness programmes and teaching people about the need to maintain hygiene to prevent the spread of viral fever.

Assistant health worker Baburam Acharya at the Dulari VDC health post said every day at least 40 viral fever patients visit the post. Most of the patients are children, he added.

Health workers said the anti-encephalitis vaccination drive has been stopped after the outbreak of viral fever in the region.

Assistant health worker Ram Prasad Giri of the Belbari VDC health post said most children coming to post for treatment of viral fever have breathing problems and show symptoms of pneumonia.

Meanwhile, a report from Rajbiraj said some 3,000 flood victims of Saptari district are facing difficult times due to lack of relief materials.

They have been taking shelter on the roadsides and schools for the last three days after rains continuing for a week collapsed their houses. Flood has swamped thousand bighas of arable land in the district.

Some 200 households of the flood victims of Odraha VDC are sheltering in a school for three days and some 200 persons of Topatole of Bamangamakatti are sheltering in another school after the flood in Khando river swamped their houses.

The flood also swept away a dozen houses in a Dalit settlement at Nakati Rayapur VDC-2. It has displaced 40 households at Bhaganimaleth. Rain swamped some 500 houses in Sakarapur VDC today.

“Though we have been sheltering in the road without food for three days, no relief has been provided to us,” Bilat Kumar of Bhaganimaleth said. Flood submerged entire village of Rampuramalniya, but the villagers have not got any relief yet, chairperson of Saptari chapter of Koshi-Victim Society, Dev Narayan Yadav, said.

A team of the Nepali Army has been sent to repair the Bhim Dam in the Khando river, CDO Himnath Dawadi said, adding that a relief team will go to Sakarapur VDC today to provide relief materials.

CDO Dawadi, also chairperson of the District Natural Disaster Rescue Committee, said that materials like sacks and galvanised iron wire will be sent to the affected areas to control the flood.

200 Maoists fall ill:

NARAYANGARH: Over 200 Maoist Peoples’ Liberation Army personnel of the PLA Third Division camp at Shaktikhor have fallen ill after drinking contaminated water after heavy rains.

They are suffering from fever and jaundice, divisional spokesperson, Abiral said, adding 114 PLA personnel of the divisional headquarters and 90 of sub-camps have fallen ill. Lack of medicines and beds in the hospital in the camp has affected treatment, Abiral said. There are 6,000 PLA personnel in the PLA third division, a divisional source said. — HNS