Oxfam India launches response to the South India floods

No clean water for washing, Nandavaram , Kurnool

PRESS RELEASE 

Oxfam India launches response to the South India floods with water, sanitation and public health support.

NEW DELHI, OCT 7. Following a rapid assessment in some of the flood affected villages in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh and in the Bagalkot district of   Karnataka, Oxfam India has decided to respond with water, sanitation and public health support to about 8,000 households in Kurnool and to about 4,000 households in Bagalkot.

''Our decision to respond in Kurnool and Bagalkot comes in the wake of the realization that both these are arid regions and therefore were not well prepared for floods.  In fact, till recently these areas were reeling under the impact of   drought. The shock is heavy and people are now  reeling under the impact of floods,'' says Nisha Agrawal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Oxfam India. 

The Oxfam India assessment team visited  urban slums and relief camps sites in Kurnool town and found the affected population staying in  temporary shelters functioning in the schools and colleges,. As many as 70 such relief camps have been opened in the district by the government. The shelters lack basic amenities such as proper toilets (numbers and hygiene conditions) and drinking water facilities.

Though water has receded from many areas, most of the people are not returning to their respective villages as their houses have been damaged and also due to availability of cooked food  in these shelters. There has been demand for temporary shelter materials (polythene, bamboo) in the affected areas.

The situation in urban slums of  Kurnool is also very bad as the area is covered with 10 to 15 inches of mud and also the lack of adequate water to clean houses and other household materials is emerging as one of the major problems.

People have lost clothes and other assets (both utensils and clothes) because of the floods. There is slush and many houses are knee deep in mud and waste material. Sewage from open drains and overflowing septic tanks have increased public health risks especially in the urban areas. People are now defecating in the open in both urban and rural areas.

In Bagalkot too, all water bodies are contaminated, not clean and not safe for consumption. The rural water supply pipelines are damaged in almost all the affected villages leading to further clean water crisis. All the food stocks available with the affected families are spoiled with flood water; people are not left with the commodities for consumption and are purely depending on the food packets distributed by government and other agencies.

''There are very high chances of outbreak of diseases due to lack of safe drinking water and  lack of adequate sanitation facilities in the affected areas. The toilets in the urban slums are filled with mud and water and people are forced to opt for open defecation that is polluting the environment,. It may lead to health problem if not addressed immediately,'' says Zubin Zaman, Humanitarian Response Manager, explaining Oxfam India's decision to work in the area WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene).

Oxfam India's response package would involve a mix of provision of clean drinking water, temporary sanitation facilities, and distribution of hygiene kits, public health promotion and construction of toilets. 

Oxfam responded to cyclone Aila in West Bengal this past June  reaching out to 10,000 affected families in 24 South Paragnas district of West Bengal. In 2004, it launched a massive response to the 2004 Tsunami in all countries in the Asian region including in India. Previously Oxfam in India had responded to the floods in 2007 in Orissa, West Bengal, Bihar and Assam and to Orissa's Super Cyclone of 1999, floods of 2001, 2003 and 2006,with immediate relief to the affected people, supporting with food aid, water, hygiene and sanitation, construction of shelters, the livelihood restoration process including focused support to women and children.

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