After flood, the despair deluge

In the police firing that followed, Class VIII student Babloo Kamath and 24-year-old newly married Shyam Sundar8212;both bystanders8212;were shot dead, both in the head. The administration said that an attack on Block Education Extension Officer L B Singh and Deputy Collector M S Hezazi was the provocation for the firing.

Consider the shocking state of relief management:

8226; Sixteen days ago, Gram Pradhan Ram Saran Lal was allocated food material for distribution as relief but he and his family are on the run after charges8212;confirmed by the administration8212;of theft and bungling.

8226; The local SHO, villagers say, refused to register a case against Lal.

8226; After taking shelter for two weeks in the local temple, Bhaumiya, 66, who looks after a family of six, returned to her damaged house but has still not received the 100 kg of wheat or the measly Rs 250 due to her as a flood victim. She has been forced to feed her family boiled wild grass. 8216;8216;The Pradhan took away our share,8217;8217; she says.

8226; Most villagers, who could not work during the floods, have taken loans of an average of Rs 2,000 to 3,000 for food. A loan that will take months to pay off.

8226; Several villagers, like Chulbul Ramdeo, have lost their houses but weeks later, are still waiting for basic relief, including plastic sheets for shelter.

8226; All the villagers have seen in the name of relief so far is cooked khichdi for two days. That stopped on the third day. 8216;8216;Nobody is willing to listen to us,8217;8217; says Budal Mandal, a labourer.

8226; Darbhanga Commissioner K P Ramaiya blames the 8216;8216;system8217;8217; and the 8216;8216;non-availability8217;8217; of foodgrains.

He admits that Lal, like other Gram Pradhans, 8216;8216;are also doing some mischief,8217;8217; but says the scale of the damage is so huge that help is a logistical nightmare. 8216;8216;There are 6.50 lakh affected families. And roads have been washed away making it difficult for us to send the food grains. To get 6.5 quintals of wheat is impossible at one go. It will tke four months to distribute relief in just one district.8217;8217;

The Muzaffarpur godown supplies relief to six districts in the area. 8216;8216;I have 10 trucks that in a day supply food to 600 people. So it will take us three months to give out relief8230;There are 327 panchayats and we have to give 3,000 quintals. How do we do it we can8217;t procure food that easily?8217;8217; A few years ago, the Bihar government had ordered that mukhiyas be involved in relief work. One officer in the administration said that the problem arose when mukhiyas started favouring their supporters over others and those left out were 8216;8216;blaming8217;8217; the administration.