Spotlight

New Delhi, 31 August 2007

Euro 9.5 m EC Relief for Flood Victims

New Delhi, September 1 (INFA): The European Commission has allocated Euro 9.5 million in humanitarian aid for flood victims in India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Emergency experts from the Commission's Humanitarian Aid department, ECHO, have visited the flood-affected areas and liaised with relief agencies on operations to be funded.

The emergency relief focuses on food rations and drinking water, emergency shelter and healthcare, in particular to prevent outbreaks of water-borne diseases. The next step would be to assist the recovery of livelihoods, damaged housing and water-sanitation facilities.

The emergency funds channeled through ECHO are under the responsibility of its European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel. "Many Europeans have experienced flooding in recent years and we know how important it is to get rapid assistance in such a terrible situation. Our thoughts are with those who have lost homes, livestock and livelihoods or, even worse, relatives or friends? But not just our thoughts: The European Commission has taken strenuous action to provide humanitarian assistance to the victims. We have immediately dispatched our emergency experts to assess the most urgent basic needs and to liaise with other international relief agencies. On the basis of their assessment, we have decided to allocate Euro 9.5 million in emergency aid," says Michel.

By early August, over five million households were affected by the floods in India and more than a million families in Bangladesh. In Nepal, over 3,50,000 people have been displaced from their homes. The damage in the three countries includes loss of standing crops, serious erosion of farmland and property, destruction of livestock, foods and tools, and contamination of surface water supplies, wells and latrines.

ECHO, which has a regional support office in New Delhi closely follows developments in humanitarian situation, plays an active role in the local coordination of relief efforts and monitors the use of Commission's relief funds.--- INFA

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Beijing Tests Less Cars-Cleaner Air Formula

NEW DELHI, September 1 (INFA):  For four days about 1.3 million automobiles had been kept off the roads in the Chinese Capital this month to test effects on environment quality.

From August 17-20, the city had cars with odd-numbered licence plates and those with even-numbered ones hit the roads on alternate days, according to the Environment Protection Bureau. And, the city plans to put this into practice to ensure clean air during the 2008 Olympics here.

Taxis, buses, police cars and ambulances, however, are exempt from this ban, explains a Bureau official, while adding that “traffic control will enable us to take about 1.3 million vehicles off the roads every day.” Once that is done, environmentalists will collect data to assess its impact as vehicular exhaust is a major source of pollution in Beijing.

The exercise has been undertaken after the success of a similar one during the Sino-African summit. This time around, the municipal transportation commission will increase public transport to ensure that commuters are not inconvenienced.  --- INFA