Bihar is one of the most disaster prone states in India . It is situated in the eastern part of India with the Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal to its north and the states of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh flanking its sides.
It is today home to more than 90 million Indians. Heavy rain in the upper catchment areas of Nepal has resulted in the rise of the water levels of all the major rivers of Bihar and so far 13 districts (out of a total of 38 districts) have been affected by the flood waters.
The worst affected districts are Darbhanga, Sheohar, Madhubani and Sitamarhi. A total of 20 million people have been affected. The flooding has so far claimed more than 86 lives, 917 cattle, damaging 323,351 houses. The flooding has affected 192.63 lakhs people , damaged 11.28 lakhs hectares of crops, rendered many homeless; some of them evacuated to safer places; others yet to be rescued.
Railway bridges and tracks have been completely washed out in several places in Bihar . Other bridges and culverts are also extensively damaged. People from many villages do not have access to towns or relief camps due to the water level. 10, 000 rail passengers have been stranded at different stations.
Although some people are being sheltered in ad hoc relief camps, most flood-affected people are staying on the highways with their children and animals without proper shelter, clothes, food and drinking water. Therefore the beneficiaries are seeking assistance from the government and local NGOs.
EFICOR has disaster response experience in situations of drought, cyclone, flooding, epidemics and earthquakes. It also provides training in project management and disaster management through workshops/ seminars for smaller local partners. EFICOR has extensive experience in disaster intervention encompassing all phases of the disaster cycle. In the year 2002, EFICOR carried out a major relief operation in the Darbhanga district of Bihar. It was also involved in major relief interventions during the Cyclone in Orissa (1999) and during the aftermath of the major earthquake in Gujarat (2001).
On hearing the magnitude of the disaster, EFICOR staff from various project sites moved to three positions in Bihar ( Patna , Muzaffarpur and Begusarai) and are conducting rapid assessment surveys.
At the same time, 3 partners have been identified and modest relief interventions are being initiated at Raxual (East Champaran District), Madhepura, (Madhepura District) Begusarai (Begusarai District) with the Tearfund UK Grant.
Information that has been coming into the Head quarters from our staff at Bihar , have signified that a major intervention is warranted in the most affected districts of Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi and Madhubani. Efforts are underway to conduct rapid assessments in specific blocks of the 3 districts. This concept paper addresses this major intervention that EFICOR plans to start immediately.