With 36 fresh deaths, current monsoon floods that brought havoc
to crops and infrastructure in Bangladesh claimed 120 lives till
Sunday morning, officials in the relief ministry said.
The flood caused by heavy downpour and onrush of water from
upper riparian in India left over eight million people in 38 out of
the country's 64 districts marooned.
Nearly 300,000 flood hit victims were rehabilitated in 1,200
flood centers in the affected districts.
The army-backed caretaker government will not seek international
aid to cope with the situation as Law and Information Advisor
Barrister Mainul Hosein Sunday told reporters that they would try
to overcome the situation by internal resources.
"We will try to manage the relief works from our own resources
but we will not oppose if donor countries voluntarily provides
assistance," he said.
The government has allocated cash money, rice and dry food among
the victims, but local media reported that the relief goods are too
scanty to meet the needs.
Chief Advisor of the caretaker government Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed
and army chief Gen Moeen Ahmed urged the people and parties to
stand beside the affected people, but the response on the ground
looks not encouraging.
A simmering dispute between the government and major political
parties has surfaced over the conduct of relief operations.
Leaders of major parties including former ruling parties --
Bangladesh Awami League and Bangladesh Nationalist Party demanded
that they should be allowed to use their party banners while
conducting the relief operations.
But both the chief advisor and the army chief declined to give
them permission to use the party banner as political activities
were banned under the state of emergency imposed on last Jan.
11.
The Chief Advisor is likely to address the nation on Sunday
evening detailing government relief and rehabilitation measures. He
is expected to make a call to the people irrespective of the party
and opinion to stand beside the flood victims.
Meanwhile, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Center Sunday said
although the water started receding slowly in northern districts,
Padma River, one of the major rivers in the country, continued
rising, deteriorating the flood situation in central region
including capital Dhaka and its adjacent districts. Small rivers
surrounding capital Dhaka registered further rise.
(Xinhua News Agency August 6, 2007)
