THE Chief Adviser's call to the nation to face the flood unitedly, irrespective of political affiliations, is very timely. Nearly one hundred people drowned in floodwater and 37 have gone missing since the flooding began in mid-July. More than half the country has gone under water and nearly 10 million people have been marooned. The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre forecasts further deterioration of the situation in the next few days. The rivers in the Padma basin continue to swell as well. There is an acute shortage of drinking water in the flood-affected areas. Water-borne diseases, especially diarrhoea, have broken out in some flood-hit areas. The Directorate General of Health Services has identified 849 unions in 146 upazilas as 'seriously affected' by water-borne diseases. It is very much likely that more unions in more upazilas will become seriously affected by diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases in the coming days.
As the situation worsens with every passing day, the response of the interim government to the situation, one must say, has to be firmed up, keeping the needs of the situation and the extent of the disaster into consideration. There have been talks about the government's preparedness to tackle the situation during and after the flood; however, it is time to translate this preparedness into actions at the field-level. On his part, the Chief Adviser and some of his colleagues in the Council of Advisers have themselves been to some flood-affected areas and distributed relief materials. The chief of the army staff has also done the same, befitting the requirements of the situation.
Meanwhile, reports in the media -- both print and electronic -- suggest the majority of the marooned people in the flood-hit areas do still remain beyond the coverage of whatever disaster management and relief activities the government so far has initiated.
In this context, the Chief Adviser has assured all concerned about that his administration being very open about private-level relief operation for the flood victims. The political parties can surely supplement the government's relief operations, as they have countrywide organisational networks. The interim administration should also try to make the best use of whatever grassroots-level logistics are available to reach help and provide succour to the flood-stricken people.
Ahmed Karim
Dhanmandi R/A, Dhaka
CA's call
FE Team | Published: August 07, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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