Swiss aid to flood victims

By A Staff Reporter

KATHMANDU, Sept 3: The Swiss Government is contributing 400,000 Swiss francs (Rs. 20 million) in emergency aid to meet the urgent needs of families affected by this year's floods and landslides.
The assistance will be provided to the Nepal Red Cross Society through the International Federation of the Red Cross, a press statement of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) said today.

The aid will be used to provide family kits, food, clean water and building materials to the victims and to maintain the response capacity of the NRCS for disasters.

Floods and landslides this year have affected 46 of the country's 75 districts. More than 470 people have died in the natural calamity since the monsoon rains began mid-July.

Nepalese civil servants and volunteers working in the United Nations interim administration of Kosovo have contributed Rs. 107,414 for the landslide and flood victims.

The Himalayan Rescue Association Nepal has also made available Rs. 50,000 for the families affected by the massive landslide in Khotang district, to the east of Kathmandu, in mid-July. At least 60 people have died in landslides in Khotang.

RSS adds, the Cottage and Small Industry Office Rautahat handed over clothes worth Rs. 500,000 to the Red Cross, Rautahat as a relief for the flood and landslide victims, at a function, recently.

From the chair, district judge Ekaraj Acharya said it is a duty of each Nepali to provide help in humanitarian terms to the flood victims as well the displaced families.

Chairman of the natural disaster relief committee and assistant CDO Mukunda Prasad Dhakal lauded the contribution made by the people of all walks of life to help the victims.

Also speaking on the occasion were industry officer Ram Narayan Jha, Red Cross president Mohammad Majarul Haq and branch manager of the Agriculture Development Bank Padma Raj Adhikari.

The contributions provided by the Cottage Industries Development Office handed over included 7,060 units of clothes for 100 victims of Basatpur, Bramhapuri and Rajdevi VDCs.

In Sindhuli, paddy crops in the periphery of Kamalakhoncha area have been damaged because of an outbreak of disease.

Khadga Bahadur Bhujel, a farmer of Hatpate VDC-5 is now extremely anxious at how he can support his family for a year after his paddy crop extending over one and a half bigahs caught the disease.
Besides Hatpate, the disease has surfaced in Ranibas, Sirthalite, Nipane, Tandi and Harsatti, according to the local farmers.

The outbreak of the disease occurred here after an acute drought followed by excessive rainfall a short time ago.

The area might face scarcity of foodgrain if the disease is not brought under control on time, Ram Avatar Adhikary, ex-chairman of Sirthalite VDC said.

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