Delhi team starts flood assessment
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 13 2017:
A five-member team of the Central Government has started assessment of the flood situation in Manipur and its impacts .
The team is being led by Ministry of Home Affairs Joint Secretary (Administration) Prakash.
Other members are Dr K Manoharan, BK Mishra, Sachin Kumar Gautam and Rama Krishnan .
Soon after landing at Imphal today, the team went to different places of Imphal East and Imphal West districts and collected a first hand account of the flood situation .
They also visited several relief camps an interacted with people taking shelter there.
The Central team accompanied by Relief and Disaster Management Principal Secretary MS Khan, Imphal East DC Th Chitra and other officials concerned first visited Pangei.
As they reached there, there was heavy rainfall and the team could not alight from their vehicles.
As such, they looked at the surrounding paddy fields which have been inundated from inside their vehicles .
Large tracts of paddy fields of Pangei and Khomidok areas such as Kabak Thabi Loukol, Ningthabi and Thangjam Khuman have been inundated .
These paddy fields have been inundated as the rain water already collected there was swelled by water overflowing from Kongba River.
Apart from inundating paddy fields, flood water is flowing over Pangei road at different places.
There the water level was rising steadily.
Out of four relief camps opened in the adjoining areas, the team visited one of them.
Notably, relief camps have been opened at Jamia Alima Hajij Khabeishoi, Gandhi Memorial School Khomidok, Khomidok Arapti Primary School and Khabeishoi LP School .
Around 1000 people of 400 families have been taking shelter at the four relief camps, said local people .
Responding to queries raised by MHA Joint Secretary Prakash, Imphal East DC Th Chitra said that the district administration has been distributing rice, dal, cooking oil and common salt to flood affected people of the district on daily basis.
Mobile health units are being despatched under the Imphal East CMO every day to flood affected areas to look into medical problems, Chitra added .
Relief and Disaster Management Principal Secretary MS Khan said that they have been distributing rice, dal, cooking oil and common salt to flood affected people under State Disaster Relief Fund norms .
He informed the Central team that no financial assistance has been extended to flood affected people so far .
On being enquired about their inspection trip, Prakash said that their purpose was limited to assessment of the flood situation and its impacts .
The Central team also visited flood affected areas of Ayangpalli, Khongman, Kongba, Bashikhong, Kongba Irong and Mayang Imphal.
The team may station at Imphal for two or three days.
The Government of India is likely to extend flood relief assistance to the State based on the report furnished by the team, conveyed a source.