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Retired in 2010, In Memoriam
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Worst floods in living memory: UN[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Worst_floods_in_living_memory_UN/articleshow/2257910.cms[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Worst_floods_in_living_memory_UN/articleshow/2257910.cms[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif] PATNA/GUWAHATI/LUCKNOW:
Although the flood fury abated in the worst-hit districts of Bihar, Assam and Uttar Pradesh, several districts in these states remained submerged even as rains lashed and flooded large parts of Orissa and Rajasthan on Sunday.
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT]Although the flood fury abated in the worst-hit districts of Bihar, Assam and Uttar Pradesh, several districts in these states remained submerged even as rains lashed and flooded large parts of Orissa and Rajasthan on Sunday.
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The United Nations has described the flood situation in India and Bangladesh as "the worst in living memory."
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[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif] "The sheer size and scale of flooding and the massive numbers of people affected pose an unprecedented challenge to the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian assistance," a UN statement said.
Though flood waters receded in the north Bihar plains, reaching relief to those marooned in their villages posed huge difficulties to authorities. Over a dozen people were injured in a clash between two groups of villagers of Mahmada and Balua in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, after one group feared the other was cutting a river embankment for saving themselves from flood.
Darbhanga (east) SDO Narendra Mandal told TOI that the clash was due to a misunderstanding. "The residents of Mahmada thought the other villagers wanted to cut an embankment. It was clear misunderstanding," Mandal said. The villagers used stones and lathis to attack each other. Many of them received head injuries, police said.
One person died in Barhulia village in Darbhanga when he fell from the rooftop of his house after chasing a food packet thrown from an IAF helicopter. A 17-year-old girl received serious injuries while collecting a food packet, police said. Riot-like scenes prevailed in Arai village, which received only 40 food packets. People fought amongst themselves for food packets dropped on a damaged bridge. "Although two officers had been drafted to Patna for assisting in locating the places of distribution, it hardly made any impact. Most of the packets fell in river," said Reyaz Ahmad, a villager.
A local NGO, which was distributing relief, said dozens of women, including children, were fighting over small packets of biscuits. "Some of us were beaten up by the villagers," said an official of the NGO.
In Assam, the health department said it had sent doctors and paramedics to the flood-hit districts to provide adequate medical care for the patients suffering from water-borne diseases.[/FONT]
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Though flood waters receded in the north Bihar plains, reaching relief to those marooned in their villages posed huge difficulties to authorities. Over a dozen people were injured in a clash between two groups of villagers of Mahmada and Balua in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, after one group feared the other was cutting a river embankment for saving themselves from flood.
Darbhanga (east) SDO Narendra Mandal told TOI that the clash was due to a misunderstanding. "The residents of Mahmada thought the other villagers wanted to cut an embankment. It was clear misunderstanding," Mandal said. The villagers used stones and lathis to attack each other. Many of them received head injuries, police said.
One person died in Barhulia village in Darbhanga when he fell from the rooftop of his house after chasing a food packet thrown from an IAF helicopter. A 17-year-old girl received serious injuries while collecting a food packet, police said. Riot-like scenes prevailed in Arai village, which received only 40 food packets. People fought amongst themselves for food packets dropped on a damaged bridge. "Although two officers had been drafted to Patna for assisting in locating the places of distribution, it hardly made any impact. Most of the packets fell in river," said Reyaz Ahmad, a villager.
A local NGO, which was distributing relief, said dozens of women, including children, were fighting over small packets of biscuits. "Some of us were beaten up by the villagers," said an official of the NGO.
In Assam, the health department said it had sent doctors and paramedics to the flood-hit districts to provide adequate medical care for the patients suffering from water-borne diseases.[/FONT]
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