2008 Bihar Floods - An Appeal

RE: EXTENSIVE AND DISASTROUS FLOODS IN BIHAR STATE, INDIA, AUGUST/SEPTEMBER, 2008

The unusually extensive Bihar floods resulting from a dam failure in 2008 were a most distressing and unfortunate occurrence. We at The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation, UK, express our heartfelt thanks to the large number of emergency agencies that were involved in helping to provide immediate and post-flood relief to mitigate the plight of thousands of Bihari families whose lives were personally affected and at risk. Many young children and elderly people were caught in these floods.

The Indian State of Bihar borders Nepal and many of Bihar's remote village communities are prone to seasonal flash flooding from swollen rivers that flow from the high mountain ranges of Nepal. Such flooding inundates and contaminates traditional reservoirs and wells used for drinking water. The use of contaminated drinking water results in many diseases of the eyes and digestive tract. Children and elderly people are particularly at risk

The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation has been considering ways in which sustainable supplies of clean fresh water can be made available in villages most vulnerable to contamination by flooding. The Foundation has dedicated funds of £50,000 GB Pounds received from generous donations which we are currently applying (in partnership with OXFAM) to special projects designed to give long-term benefit to rural populations in Bihar State. This Kanka-Gajendra Foundation funding is enabling the construction of approximately 110 flood-proof/contamination-proof/ surface-sealed deep tube-wells to provide access to clean water at all times including during flood crises.

The photographs show the plight of rural Bihari villagers during the flood and a typical design for a raised flood-proof clean water tube-well.

These wells are currently under construction and scheduled for completion in mid-2009. The new wells will provide access to pumps delivering clean water via elevated platforms located above maximum historic flood levels for the benefit of some 27,500 people located in remote villages and hamlets in Bihar. Women and men from the villages are receiving training in the maintenance and repair of the well pumps. Spare parts and expert advice has been made available to ensure long-term benefits. The villagers are receiving instruction in aspects of personal hygiene and use and storage of uncontaminated water supplies to reduce the incidence of disease, during and after periods of flooding. New water containers have been provided to those involved in collecting the clean water from the well pumps.

In this endeavour, in the areas of Bihar which are annually at risk of flooding and where we are active, we at The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation, UK, hope to reduce the local population's future intake of contaminated water, particularly in times of flood, thereby reducing the future local incidence of eye infections, gastric disorders and other diseases associated with impure water.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE A DONATION TOWARDS OUR CLEAN WATER PROGRAMME IN BIHAR INDIA?

You and your friends may wish to make a financial donation to The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation for the future provision of additional flood-proof clean water tube wells or other aid within the Foundation's stated objectives for the benefit of rural communities in Bihar State, India.

If you wish to donate for the Bihar flood clean water appeal and/or for our work in the UK, please submit your cheque, postal order, banker's draft, international money order, etc., payable to "The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation" and post your donation to:

The Kanka-Gajendra Foundation,

UK Registered Charity Number 1124124
PO Box 241,
Cheadle Hulme,
Cheadle, Cheshire,
SK8 7XY, UK

Please be sure to include a cover note written clearly in block capitals, including your full name and address and if possible, your e-mail address, in order that we can acknowledge receipt of your kind and valuable donation.**

**ALL DATA ARE TREATED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE UK DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998