Three persons in Mahottari and two in Saptari have been died of cold wave in terai. During the period of one week, three persons of the same VDC have died of severe cold in Mahottari. The deceased are Badan Mandal (50), Manif Ansari (65) and Soladevi Mahara (60) of Bhatauliya VDC. They are from poor class and died due to the lack of warm clothes. Cold wave with thick fog has adversely affected life in the district since over a half month.

Nippy conditions have affected normal life in 70 southern VDCs out of 76 in the district. The cold spell has hit elderly and children worst, hospital has been receiving a huge flow of patients around 25 persons suffering from cold visit the hospital daily.

Similarly two persons have died of cold wave in Saptari. The deceased have been identified as Anarbati Sada (55) of Maleth VDC-5 and Kari Ram (75) of Basbitti VDC-6, according to a local, Bahadur Yadav. Increasing cold has affected people in many parts of the district. Many children have been suffering from cold diarrhoea and pneumonia. At least 4 to 5 pneumonia and diarrhea patients have been visiting Sahgarmatha zonal hospital every day for treatment. The hospital has been treating the patient on the floor due to the lack of sufficient beds.

Heavy fog and cold has made life in many villages and urban areas like Rajbiraj increasingly difficult. While movement of people in market area has reduced, traders said business activities have also gone down. People are seen using bonfires throughout the day to avoid cold.

Similarly, Banke district is excessively affected by cold wave for the past few days. Regular flights from there have been affected and markets have sparse visitors. One boy has already died of excessive cold in Banke district. The Nepalgunj Municipality and the DDC have been preparing to provide firewood to those with poor economic condition.

The condition of Makawanpur is the also similar since the past two days. The normal life has been affected in northern parts of Makwanpur district. Daman, Palung, Markhu, Simbhanjang and other places are under the grip of thick cold wave, according to locals. According to Palung Primary Health Post, many patients are unable to visit health centers due to cold wave. Meanwhile, Hetauda has witnessed sudden dip in temperature. Bonfires have become a common sight in many places.

Similarly, the normal life in Dhangadhi has been affected due to cold wave with thick fog since the past few days. With the fall in the temperature, school children, laborers, elderly people and freed Kamaiyas have been affected more. Local meteorological forecasting division has predicted snowfall in the far-western mountainous and hilly districts.

In Ilam, snowfall has affected normal life in northern parts of the district. The snowfall for the first time in some tourist destinations in the northern parts of Ilam since Thursday afternoon left normal life disrupted and tourists stranded. Snowfall has affected Meghana, Jaubari, Gauribas, Sandukpur and Chhintapul. Tourists bound for Sandukpur have been stranded on the way due to snowfall. Transport services in the areas have also been disrupted.

(Posted on 26th December)



Koshi-displaced surpasses the previous count

Local administration in Sunsari district is conducting a third census of those displaced by the Koshi flood, after the number of displaced was found larger than previously believed. The government estimates show that 50,000 people from 23 VDCs of Sunsari were displaced by the Koshi flood of Aug. 18.

However, the number of displaced housed inside various state managed camps has surpassed all original counts. The numbers of displaced increases everyday as flood victims from bordering Indian villages are allegedly entering Nepal in seek of asylum and relief.

Over 25,000 flood victims from bordering Indian states are staying at various state managed camps in Sunsari and Saptari districts.

Sunsari district administration has discussed the situation with Indian authorities while border security has been upped to control the possible entry of Indian flood victims. Chief District Officer Durga Bhandari, the census is being taken to ensure relief work is performed effectively.

\\\"The census is being carried out based on the citizenship certificates and voters\\\' identity cards. For those who have lost their identification papers in the flood, their neighbors or relatives can vouch for them,\\\" he said.

Meanwhile, the local administration of Sunsari district has requested the government render loans Koshi flood victims previously received from government banks exempt.

Source: nepaldisaster.org