Update : Progress of relief distribution

Dear friends

This is the update on the progress of relief distribution ;

We will not be going to Madhepura on 26th, as planned earlier. We will be going there between 28th Nov and 2nd December. The delay is caused mainly due to unavailability of commercial vehicles (sumo /mahindra pik up) as all are booked or seized for election duty.  Most of the vehicles will be relieved by 27th, hence earliest we can leave is 28th.

I have procured ;

• Warm children wear new -50 sets, old - around 80 pc
• Clothes for women & older children - around 100 sets
• Medicines (for de worming,analgesics,eye-drops,antiseptic & anti-fungal creme, neoprene powder,cold medications) of Rs 8k
• Blankets & shawls - have around 60 now, will be getting some more

Now, that I have some more time I will be getting more materials for this trip .These are all in addition to of the relief materials we are buying with the funds send by Bhawana Ji. I had placed order for the blankets & should be getting them by tomorrow.

Best regards,

~chandan

Blanket/Shawl Distribution campaign at Bhanvertola, Madhepura

Friends,

We have decided to provide blankets/shawls to villagers of bhanvertola, Madhubani.

We are raising funds for this purpose. Please support this cause as the winter is fast approaching and the best thing we can provide to poor people of this remote village at this time is blanket.

We are collecting funds through prayaas (NGO).

See below for details about  contribution through Prayaas.

-Ashok

Sending donations through NGO (Prayaas).

http://www.prayaas.org/

Please mention flood relief and your name in remarks section while transferring fund. Mention your name in the comments (will help us track)
Send an email with details to: Amitesh.Bharti@in.bosch.com 
make a CC to: ashok.1857@gmail.com 

Account in on the name of: M/S Prayaas
Current Account No. : 10447347087 
Bank Address : State Bank of India, Indiranagar, Bangalore
Bank Code : 3301IFSC code: SBIN0003301
Routing Number (Swift No.) : SBI NIN BB 147A
MICR number : 560002021

Prayaas Official Address:Mr. Amitesh Bharti,Prayaas(r),
C1-201, GreenWood Regency,Doddakannahalli village,Carmelaram
PO, Adj. Wipro,Sarjapur Road,Bangalore – 560035, India.

If you want to send a cheque/DD:Please send the crossed A/c Payee cheque in favour of,"SBI, A/c Prayaas, Current A/c No. 10447347087"

Donar seeking Tax exemption under section 80G, please donate via PRAYAAS 
The certificate & the receipt of your contribution will be dispatched by Prayaas. To get the certificate & the receipt of your contribution, Please email your name and address along with detail of your contribution to Amitesh atAmitesh.Bharti@in.bosch.com
make a CC to: ashok.1857@gmail.com

Flood update: Bharathua embankment, Aurai, Muzaffarpur

Dear friends,

Given below in brief are the flood relief work undertaken near Bharathua, in Aurai block , Muzaffarpur.

1. Muzaffarpur

Location - Bharathua embankment, 40 Km from Muzaffarpur on Sitamadhi highway.

Panchayat: Benipur

Relief for people living on Bagmati embankment near villages Bharathua, Benipur & Shankarpur

This embankment was breached earlier this month & thousands of people took refuge here. Many are still living on the embankment in very testing conditions, & are living in shelters made by flimsy polythene sheet.They need food, potable water & medicines,along with day to day requirements like soap, disinfectant,kerosene lanterns et al

Sushma Ji of Tejasaswi Sewa Sansthan, Sonepur has been working with these people shortly after the inundation.

Tejasawi Sewa Sansthan (TSS) had written to Ashok requesting help & we were able to communicate & coordinate help for the same earlier this week.

We had met Sushma Ji & members of TSS at their Sonepur office on 25th of this month & delivered the relief material listed below

• Silverex (Silver Sulfadiazine) antimicrobial creme ( Rexin pharma,24gm Rs 58) -24 pc
• Biodryl cough medication(children) 80 bottles
• Paracetimol tablets (Calpol) 550 ( 55 strips)
• Reduced osmolarity ORS sachets (Biotral) 400
• Water purification tablets (blister pack) 75 mg stabilized tablets -1,10,000 tabs
• Clothes : Children, women,men( used clothes) 12 cartons

Today early morning, we picked Shusma Ji & her colleague from Sonepur and reached the distribution site by 9 am. After walking for 3-4 KM , the materials were brought to the embankment. TSS had earlier made a list of beneficiaries from those taking shelter on the embankment & distribution was done accordingly. As we also had to go to Madhubani ( Benibad) for flood relief, we were carrying clothes & medicines for the same. However, as we saw that it would not be possible to cover even one section of beneficiaries with the material that TSS had, we gave them the clothes we were carrying for Benibad ( 5 cartons)

A lot more has to be done in that area & we will try our best to help them with what we have. Sushma Ji & her team are committed and hardworking & are undertaking relief work in Aurai block. Whenever we can, we will try to help them with relief materials, transportation & distribution. . Today Srikant ji was with them & helped them with what he could.

We will be working with TSS for Aurai region in the coming days.

Am attaching some pictures of same.

best regards,

~chandan

flood update: Kusheshwarsthan, 40 Km from Darbhanga

Dear friends,

Given below in brief are the flood relief work undertaken near Kusheshwarsthan.

1. Darbhanga.

Location - Kusheshwarsthan, 40 Km from Darbhanga

Panchayat: Madhar-lakshya gram

Villages covered: Mahdar mushari, Mahdidih Mushari, Nadiami Mushari,

Panchayat : Aurahi

Villages covered: Batauaa Mushari, Missi Mushahri, Bramhapur Mushari

All these villages fall under mahadalit (mushar samudaya)

The distribution of relief material in this area was carried out by "Gyan Sewa Bharati Sansthan"(GSBS) located at lehariasarai, Darbhanga

GSBS was in touch with Ashok and the request was forwarded to us during the first week of August.

Relief material in the form of clothes & medicines were sent to them on 11th Aug'2009 :The details being,

10 cartons of clothes for children, women & men ; each carton on an approximation contained 60-100 cloth sets.

One carton of Electral ORS sachets.


These materials were sent by Bus to Darbhanga with two member from our team, Srikant Ji & Rajesh.

They met Mr.S.N Jha, Mr Bhupendra, Mr Lalit Jha and along with them left for Biraul by train, once there, they traveled by 'Trekker', rickshaw & boat to reach the identified villages by evening.

They came back to Darbhanga by night & Mr. Jha assured of distribution of the materials to the above mentioned villages within the next few days.

Srikant Ji stayed overnight at Darbhanga & after meeting Mr Jha & receiving a list of medicines needed there came back to Patna.

I have been in touch with Mr Jha regarding the distribution & follow up of the condition there & had requested him to send the photographs of the distribution & details of the materials distributed by mail.

I have not received any mail from Mr Jha till now, & after inquiring about the same, I was assured that the mails & photographs have been sent to Ashok about a week back.

If Ashok has any such mail, I would request him to forward it to me.

We were supposed to leave today for a 4 day camp at Kusheshwarsthan but have postponed it as I have not had any communication with GSBS on the proposed day of distribution & Srikant ji was informed about distribution of first lot of medicine & clothes by people of that area. We are awaiting details regarding proposed distribution for second lot of relief materials

Total expenses for this 3 day trip was around Rs.4000, details of which are available on expenses spreadsheet of this blog.

The medicines sent consisted mainly of Electral Sacahets ( 1000 pc large sachet ,Electral W.H.O formula based) & some B-complex capsule strips.

Mr jha has gone to his village, & I will be going to Kusheshwarsthan in a few days when Mr Jha will be back at his office Srikant Ji too has gone back today.

Our relief effort will continue as it has been for the last month or so.

Thanks for all your help.

Best regards,

~chandan

Note: [Ashok's Response]: Till now I have not received any update from Mr Jha. However here is a mail from Ms. Sushama Singh Ji.
-------------

Respected Sir

We extend hearty thanks to you and your esteem team for providing support for the flood victims. Today we have distributed clothes and medicines among the flood victims in Orai block of Muzaffarpur district. Chandan Jee has sent one person to share his hands in distribution of clothes and medicines- His name is Mr. Shree Kant Singh from Patna.We request you to provide more clothes and medicines, so that we could able to cover more people. Some of the clothes were very worse, the people are not accepting it, so we request you to kindly give us good clothes. We need more medicines also.

Awaiting your response Sir

With regards

Ms. Sushama Singh
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flood relief 2009

Hi

Today we came back from madhubani where we were stuck up for 2 days.. the highway was under water, we wre in bagha block.
The situation is so different..there are no indicators either in media or in peripheral neighborhood about whats happening inside the flood prone areas. Highway frm madhubani to benibad is flooded. we came back via madhepura.

Went to sonepur & gave the relief materials to Tehjashwai Sewa Sansthan. They will be going to aurai to distribute the materials on sun.

We will be picking them up from Sonepur tomorrow morning & going with them for distribution at Aurai.

-chandan

Update: 6 Feb 2009

Dear friends,

We have distributed blankets & clothes at Birpur (4 km from Kosi barrage) today and are returning to Ghospur where we will spend the night. Tomorrow, we will do distributions at Lakshmania & Balua villages where coupon for the same has already been distributed today by Ashok Ji, who is from Dr.Mishra's family.

We will move in to Chatapur day after tomorrow. There is still problems taking a four wheeler there but most of the interior places can be reached by two wheeler.

We didnt have much relief material with us, but we distributed around 200 blankets and 250 dress sets for children which we had in our vehicle, equally at these three places. Ashok Mishra Ji, from Balua has been helping us in local distribution of coupons and subsequent delivery of relief materials.

Anubha Ji, these 250 dresses were the last of 800 dresses send in two consignments from Jalandhar. Thanks a lot.

The cold weather in these areas is slowly wearing off, and more people can be seen in the open..and with Kosi flowing back in its course, things look brighter.

Thanks to all of you who have worked for the Kosi flood relief.

Thanks & regards,
chandan
+91 993 1763 070

Update: 28 Jan 2009

It must be one of the better news that all people & organization connected in flood relief have heard lately.

The Kosi is back on course, back where it belonged.

This news comes because of the untiring hard work of engineers from Govt.of Bihar, from Vashistha construction, from other agencies who were working on this 24x7

The people of Nepal & Bihar, who worked (laborers,contractors,engineers & all others) under tough weather conditions for close to 9 weeks have made it possible.

The repair work was very tough, and after the partial collapse of coffer dam 3 earlier this month, things looked a bit uncertain.

The whole team has done well to bring Kosi back & that is really good work; Now, they have to make sure that the breach is totally repaired and that vigil is maintained all through the embankments & dredging & maintenance is undertaken regularly.


We are at Dighi Panchayat, near Biharigunj.

We have been distributing warm clothes & blankets in Koriapatti & Bhawartola villages. The people from Bhawaertola will be coming to dighi to get the blankets tomorrow afternoon.

We cannot do distribution of blankets inside these villages as they are still not reachable by 4 wheeler, & also because crowds swell to unmanageable size during distribution.

We have given woolen shawl, children clothes earlier today( 60 families) when we were there to distribute the coupons for blanket distribution.

Water level went down by about a feet yesterday & we hope to get a clear traversable road to this cluster of villages shortly.

We will be here till 31st Jan i.e Saraswati Puja.

We have got some educative kits for small children which we shall be distributing on 30/31st Jan.

By Chandan.