The Sorrow of Bihar - Situation of Persons with Disabilities in flood relief operations in Bihar, India

On August 18th 2008, the embankment of Kosi River in Nepal was breached turning the nearby areas into watery graves. The Kosi, known as “Sorrow of Bihar” for the devastation it causes every year, had struck once again, however this time the fault lay on human negligence. Due to political interference the embankment was not repaired on time, thus, affecting 3 million people in Supaul, Araria and Madhepura districts of Bihar.

In comparison to other states, Bihar ranks among the lowest in terms of socio-economic indicators like health, nutrition, income etc. Government and NGO interventions are minimal in rural areas. Given this context and the fact that the government was caught unawares by the flood, the situation soon worsened.

Two representatives from Leonard Cheshire Disability  South Asia Regional Office visited the flood relief camps and assessed the situation of persons with disabilities which is described below -

Situation in the Relief Camps 

Government and international development organisations like Oxfam, UNICEF, UNDP, Action Aid India etc. were providing relief services to around 250,000 people residing in 285 camps. However, the number of affected people kept increasing day-by-day and there was a shortage of food, clothes and utensils. The camps lacked proper sanitation facilities with one of the camps having only 10 toilets for 500 people.

One of the camp residents expressed - “We have only one set of clothing so we haven't had a bath in the last eight days”.
 

Very few measures were taken to provide health services for pregnant and lactating women. In some camps the fuel was not sufficient to prepare food for all the residents. Because of the poor health and hygiene conditions in the camps there was a danger of an epidemic breaking out.

Situation of People with Disabilities

People with disabilities have been totally neglected by the government in the relief operations. Some international development organisations have reached out to persons with disabilities as part of their relief operations, but, none of them were exclusively catering to this vulnerable group.

Many persons with disabilities were searching for their family members lost in the commotion following the floods.  On a day-to-day basis, they were struggling to access food, water and health services. The inaccessible toilets in the relief camps added to their woes. Some of them slept in the open air in damp conditions without blankets.

There is no authentic data on number of people with disabilities residing in the relief camps or on how many of them have lost their lives in the disaster. LCD-SARO team could identify 18 persons with disabilities in one of the camps run by Action Aid.

Once back into their villages, these disabled people would find it difficult to sustain themselves as their houses are destroyed and their family members displaced. Also, it would be difficult for them to find any employment opportunities. Therefore, it is essential that government and non-government organisations reach out to support people with disabilities and help them restore their lives.

Reported by
Arun.C.L
Programme Officer
LCD-South Asia Regional Office