Kathmandu, (Asian independent) The death toll from floods and landslides in Nepal triggered by unseasonal rainfall has increased to 101, with 35 others still missing, according to authorities.
The rain-induced disasters have left 40 people injured and caused a huge loss of crops and properties.
“We are currently focusing on rescue and relief operations. The estimate of the losses of properties will be done later,” Hum Kala Pandey, chief of the Disaster and Conflict Management Division, told Xinhua news agency on Thursday night.
“We have evacuated over 4,000 people to safe places from different districts.”
Pandey said the unexpected downpours that started on Monday after the monsoon receded earlier this month had hit Province 1 in the east and the provinces of Sudur Paschim and Karnali in the west.
“There was no heavy rainfall on Thursday, therefore we are expecting there won’t be further loss from now on,” he added.
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba visited Bajhang and Kailali districts in Sudur Paschim on Thursday, and he directed local authorities to launch prompt rescue and relief operations and promised a relief package to farmers who lost their paddy.
According to an estimate by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, paddy worth 10 billion NPR ($8 million) has been destroyed.
“We have started to collect reports on the losses,” said Prakash Kumar Sanjel, spokesperson for the ministry.
“It will take some days to find out the actual losses.”
The government has decided to provide 200,000 NPR to each family that has lost a member in the disasters, and an additional 100,000 NPR to families losing more than one member.
For families who lost houses, the government offers an aid ranging between 300,000 NPR and 500,000 NPR.
