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Press Release

29 August 2008

UK provides £150,000 to help those affected by Indian floods


DFID has asked UNICEF to redirect £150,000 of an existing Trust Fund for immediate assistance to those who have been made homeless by the severe floods in the Bihar region, India.

The funding will be used to supply up to 20 camps which currently house 10,000 displaced families with clean water, shelter and sanitation.

DFID Minister, Shahid Malik said:

"The situation in Bihar is particularly serious and the UK has responded quickly to provide help to those affected. We are in contact with the Government of Bihar and are on standby to step up assistance if needed. We will continue to monitor the situation closely."

Notes to editors

  • At a national level, over 11 million are affected by floods, significantly less than in 2007. However, the recent situation in Bihar has resulted in rapid and severe flooding in areas not prepared for such events.
  • The Government of India estimates that 1,568 people have died (as of 24 August).
  • The situation in Bihar is particularly serious following a 2 km breach in the eastern embankment of Kosi River in Kusha (Indo-Nepal border), which occurred on August 18.
  • More than 2.6 million people in 13 districts of Bihar have been affected.
  • On 28th August, the Prime Minister declared the Bihar floods a national calamity and announced £125 million and 125,000 metric tonnes of food for the relief efforts.
  • Bihar accounts for 16.5% of the flood prone area and 22.1% of the flood affected population of India. 73% of Bihar is flood prone, but only 43% is protected by structural interventions. Flood damage is generally about 30-40% of total Indian damages.
  • The plains of Bihar are drained by various rivers with their catchments in the Himalayas. Where the rivers enter the plains, the high sediment load settles, raising the beds of rivers, shrinking their channels and blocking flow. In the past 30-40 years, the population has grown rapidly and high population densities in the flood plains leads to high vulnerability to floods.

For further information, contact Barbara Hewitt on 020 7023 0620 or 020 7023 0600, e-mail pressoffice@dfid.gov.uk or call our Public Enquiries Point on 0845 300 4100.