Rising rivers flood more Terai villages

Rising rivers flood more Terai villages
TNN | Aug 3, 2011, 04.25AM IST

LUCKNOW: More areas in Terai region along theUP-Nepal border and central UP were flooded aswater level of rivers flowing via Nepal continued to rise on Tuesday. The situation in Barabanki and Gonda worsened with water from the Ghaghra river, which breached an embankment at Elgin on Monday, entering more villages forcing people to shift to safer places.

Though the officials of the districts affected by the floods have launched a relief operation, they feared that incessant rains along the Himalayan foothills may aggravate the situation further. Meanwhile, the state government has ordered suspension of a chief engineer and four other engineers on charges of neglecting maintenance of the embankment at Charsari, which was constructed a few years back. Repair of Charsari embankment on Gonda-Barabanki border was underway. At least 30,000 people in parts of Barabanki, Gonda, Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Balrampur and Siddharth Nagar districts have been affected by the floods. More than 2,000 hectares of agricultural land has also been inundated, destroying paddy and cane crops.

The PAC has been deployed and districts magistrates are personally supervising the relief operations.

Officials said that no loss of life has been reported so far. "We have taken all possible relief measures including shelter and food for those displaced," said an official spokesman of Barabanki district administration. Gonda district magistrate, Ram Bahadur said the water level of the river is rising because of release of water from the dams in Nepal. "We have made all arrangements to tackle the situation. However, the next three days will be crucial as there are reports of more rains in Nepal," he said.

Water level of the Ghaghra was rising in Bahraich and Ayodhya as well. The Rapti was rising dangerously in Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharth Nagar and Gorakhpur while the Sharda was in spate in Lakhimpur Kheri.

The Betwa was flowing above normal level in Jalaun and Hamirpur. The Ganga was in spate in Fatehgarh, Kanpur, Kannauj, Rae Bareli, Ballia and Allahabad. The water level of Yamuna was increasing along its route from Mathura, Agra, Etawah to Auraiya, Harmirpur, Banda and Allahabad. The Gomti river was rising in Sitapur, Sultanpur and Jaunpur.

Read In Detail At :- http://cdrn.org.in/show.detail.asp?id=22261

NGO demands proper relief for flood victims

NGO demands proper relief for flood victims

By our Staff Reporter GUWAHATI, July 24: The NGO Brothers has alleged corruption in the distribution of relief items to people affected by flood in the State this year. General secretary of the NGO, Dibyajyoti Saikia said, “Members of our NGO had visited flood-affected areas in Lakhimpur, Dhemaji and Kaziranga recently. There is widespread corruption going on in the name of distribution of relief items to flood victims. Fake lists of villages and flood victims are being made. State Water Resources minister Rajiv Lochan Pegu had visited only a few flood-affected areas in Lakhimpur recently. He saw the pitiable condition in which the flood victims are living. But why has he not taken any measures for proper relief and rehabilitation of these people?” The NGO has demanded that the State Government should issue strict orders to the district administration in the flood-affected districts of the State to ensure that there is “no corruption whatsoever in the distribution of relief items” and to ensure that the flood victims get proper medical treatment.

Warning of climate change’s threat to global security, Ban urges concerted action

Warning of climate change’s threat to global security, Ban urges concerted action

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks to journalists after a Security Council meeting on climate change

20 July 2011 –

Climate change is a real threat to international peace and security, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, urging developed countries to lead the global effort to find ways to mitigate and adapt to it detrimental effects, with emerging economies shouldering their fair share of the responsibility.

“Extreme weather events continue to grow more frequent and intense in rich and poor countries alike, not only devastating lives, but also infrastructure, institutions, and budgets – an unholy brew which can create dangerous security vacuums,” said Mr. Ban, addressing the Security Council’s debate on the impact of climate change on international peace and security.

Mr. Ban noted that the international community had made some progress through agreements reached in Copenhagen and Cancún in the context of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), adding that those pacts formed the foundation for action on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enabling all countries to adapt.

“Now we need accelerated operationalization of all the agreements made at Cancún, including on protecting forests, adaptation and technology. Climate finance, the sine qua non for progress, must move from a conceptual discussion to concrete delivery of ‘fast-start’ financing and agreement on sources of long-term financing,” said the Secretary General.

He said the next Conference of Parties to UNFCCC in Durban, South Africa, in December must make a decisive move towards achieving those goals.

Source :- http://cdrn.org.in/show.detail.asp?id=22195